Simpler Times
by kazoozle
Summary: Every legend has a beginning. It's Team STRQ's first year at Beacon, who knows what crazy adventures lie ahead of them! Trying to stay as close to canon as I can, but that could change very quickly. Rated M for safety in the future.
1. Day 1

**Hey everybody! Due to hiatus fever, I got this idea to write about Team STRQ's time at Beacon! Now, obviously, at the time I start this, we don't know a lot about Team STRQ. As such, I'll will be taking some creative freedom in regards to the characters. That means, as we learn more about STRQ, a lot of the stuff in this story may become invalidated. I will try to accommodate any new information regarding STRQ, as long as it doesn't contradict what I have already written. Besides that, this is RWBY's Universe, and I'll try to stick to the canon as closely as I can. Enjoy!**

* * *

Day 1

Summer

Summer Rose stood at the airship station with her father, waiting for her ship to Beacon Academy. It was the first day of her first semester, and she couldn't be more nervous.

"But Dad, what if people don't like me? What if I can't measure up to the other students?" she asked him.

"Summer, for the millionth time," her father answered. "You were at the top of your combat class at Signal, and you're one of the most likeable people ever. You shouldn't have a problem making friends." Summer wasn't buying it though, she was way too nervous. "Now come here and give me a hug, pumpkin, before you miss your ship."

"I'm gonna miss you, Dad," Summer said as she hugged her father.

"I'll miss you too, sweetie," he replied, choking up a bit. "Please remember to call me if you need anything, and most of all, be careful."

"I will, Dad. I love you."

"I love you too, Summer, and I'm so proud of you," he said as he kissed his daughter on her head. "Now go on, save the world!"

Summer let go of her father and boarded the airship, and waved goodbye as the ship lifted off. She looked out the window, admiring the view of Vale from the sky, and wondered what the view from Beacon would look like. The distinct hum of a hologram pulled her attention away from the window, as the hologram of a young, blonde woman appeared.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon," the woman greeted. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch."

 _Is she a professor?_ Summer thought to herself. _There's no way she's older than 25._

"You are among a privileged few that have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsman and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world."

 _Well, she seems nice!_ Summer thought to herself. _Maybe studying here could be fun if the professors are all like that._

As Glynda's hologram dissipated, Summer saw it. Beacon Academy. The sight was breathtaking, the massive school overlooking the Vale Harbor from the cliff. Summer began to feel intimidated as the airship approached the academy, the campus soon starting to tower over the ship. She made her way to the port docking hatch, she wanted to be one of the first students off of the ship. As she stepped off the ship, she stopped and looked up in admiration, Beacon's CCT Tower dominating the sky around her.

"Hey, back off!" a woman yelled, grabbing Summer's attention. She looked to her right to try and locate the source. What she found were three people, two standing, with the third on the ground.

One of them was a woman, who Summer reasoned put the other guy on the ground. She was taller than Summer, had a very young, pretty face, fierce red eyes, and long, midnight black hair. She wore a red and black dress that went down to her thighs, wore red gauntlets on her forearms, and black thigh-high boots. On her hip sat what Summer assumed was a katana, in a high-tech sheath.

Next to her was an equally tall, handsome man. He had short, slicked back hair, the same color as the woman's, as well as the same red eyes. He wore a nice-looking grey dress shirt and pants, and had a long, red and black cape hanging off his shoulders. Under the cloak, Summer could make out what looked like a very large greatsword,

And getting up off of the ground was a blonde, scraggly man. He wore a tan vest over a lighter tan button-up shirt, and khaki pants. On his left arm, he had a red bandana tied to his bicep, and he wore a silver pauldron on his right shoulder.

"Geez, Raven!" said the dark haired man, laughing. "At Beacon for two minutes and you're already picking fights?"

"Don't even start with me, Qrow!" the woman, now known as Raven, shouted back to her counterpart, visibly growing more agitated. "He was the one that came at me!"

"Came at you!?" the blonde boy shouted. "What gave you that idea? All I wanted was to see your weapon! Is that a reason to deck someone?"

"You came close to me and looked below the belt, what was I supposed to think?" Raven reasoned.

"Wait, whoa whoa, he did what?" Qrow said, getting agitated. "You some kind of perv trying to get a peek at my sister?"

"I can handle this, Qrow!" Raven pleaded with her brother.

"I already told you, I was just trying to look at her sword!" the blonde boy argued.

"Were you trying to play with her sword, or yours?" Qrow replied, getting in the blonde boy's face. Summer could swear she saw visible sparks between the two men, and any second, a fight could break out.

"That's enough, Qrow!" Raven said, breaking the two boys up. "He's not worth the time."

"Yeah, you're right," Qrow agreed, backing off. "Good luck at initiation," he said, smirking at the blonde boy. As Raven and Qrow were walking away, Summer walked up to the blonde boy.

"Why did you just take that from them?" she asked him.

"It's not a good look for me to break someone's face on the first day," the boy said confidently as he turned to face Summer. "Hi there, Taiyang Xiao Long," he said as he held out his hand. "Tai for short."

"Summer Rose," Summer introduced herself.

"Huh, you don't really look like a 'Summer,'" Tai said.

"Oh? What do I look like, then?" she replied coyly. Taiyang thought about it for a moment.

"You look like a… Ruby!" he said happily.

"Well I'm sorry to disappoint," Summer replied sarcastically.

"Well, tell you what, you can make it up to me by letting me check out your weapon!" Tai said, grinning.

"Didn't you almost get in a fight over someone else's weapon?" Summer teased.

"What can I say? I like weapons," he answered, scratching the back of his head.

 _He seems harmless enough,_ Summer thought. _I suppose it couldn't hurt._ Summer drew the dual swords that she kept beneath her white cloak and handed them to Taiyang.

"Whoa!" he said, as he admired the craftsmanship and mechanics. "Dual longswords with .45 caliber pistols built into the hilts. Blades are telescopic and folding to convert into pistol mode, and a switch to equip silencers to the pistols. This is impressive, Summer! You designed these?"

"That's right!" Summer replied, feeling some pride in herself from the compliment.

"Does it have a name?" Tai asked.

"Yeah, Silent Thorn," Summer answered.

"Fitting name," Taiyang agreed as he returned the swords to Summer. She looked Taiyang up and down as she sheathed Silent Thorn, and noticed that he didn't have a weapon on him.

"So, where's your weapon?" Summer asked him.

"Right here!" he said, tapping the pauldron on his shoulder.

"That's your weapon?"

"Yeah, check this out!" he said, excitedly. Suddenly, bits of metal started forming around Taiyang's arm, eventually encasing it, covering him from shoulder to fingers. The silver colored metal turned into a bright golden color as his Aura began to course through the gauntlet.

"Wow!" was all Summer could say. She had never seen a weapon designed like that.

"Impressive, huh?" Taiyang asked, his confidence and pride showing clearly. "This is my pride and joy, Dragon Fist!"

"What is it exactly?" Summer asked.

"Well, it's a gauntlet that can channel my Aura and work in tandem with my Semblance. It encases my entire arm to distribute the recoil," he explained.

"Recoil from what?"

"The explosions that it causes when I punch with it," he said, matter-of-factly. "So, I guess you can say it packs a _punch_."

"And just like that, my interest in being your friend has disappeared," Summer snarked in response to the pun.

"Gee, first time I got that response," Taiyang replied sarcastically as Dragon Fist retracted into the pauldron.

"Speaking of which," Summer said as she pulled out her scroll, "let me see your scroll, we should trade numbers!" Taiyang complied as Summer exchanged their numbers. After giving Tai his scroll back, Summer noticed the time. "Oh crap! Tai, we're gonna miss the Welcoming Ceremony!"

And with that, the two new friends bolted to the main hall. They walked in and tried to find a spot in the large crowd of people. As they found a spot, someone walked up to the microphone that was set up in the sparring ring. He was a taller man, dressed in a dark green suit, with a coffee mug in one hand and a cane in the other. He had messy gray hair, and his brown eyes peered over some small sunglasses.

"Who's that?" Taiyang asked.

"Th-that's Professor Ozpin, the headmaster!" Summer replied, surprised that Taiyang hadn't known.

"That's Ozpin?"

"Yeah, didn't you see him during your entrance exam?"

"No, that Glynda chick was the one that tested me."

"I'll keep this brief," Ozpin said, interrupting the two friends. "You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction." Summer and Taiyang threw questioning looks at each other.

"You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only take you so far. It is up to you to take the first step," Ozpin finished. He stepped down, and the blonde woman from the hologram, Glynda, stepped up to the microphone.

"You will all spend the night in the ballroom tonight, and tomorrow your initiation will begin. I suggest you all get plenty of rest," she explained.

"Did he seem… disinterested to you?" Taiyang asked Summer.

"I mean, he's not wrong," she replied. "They can't hold our hands forever."

"Yeah, I suppose," Tai agreed. "C'mon, we should probably find the ballroom."

The two friends set off to explore Beacon's campus a bit, looking for their temporary lodging. Once they found it, they said their goodbyes to go find their belongings. Once Summer was all dressed in her pajamas and washed up for bed, she hunted around the large floor space for a empty sleeping bag. Once she got settled in, she pulled out her scroll, excited to update her father.

" _Hey Dad!"_ Summer sent him. After a minute, she received a reply.

" _Hey honey! How was your first day?"_

" _Not as bad as I thought. Already made a friend :)"_

" _See? What'd I tell ya? How'd you meet them?"_

" _He almost got in a fight after we got off the airship xD"_

" _He, huh? I hope you're behaving yourself!"_

" _Oh don't start, I just met him! Besides, he's not my type"_

" _If you say so…"_

" _Relax, you know me better than that. I should get to sleep soon, initiation is tomorrow."_

" _Okay, goodnight sweetheart! Good luck tomorrow!"_

Summer smiled and put her scroll on silent, deciding to call it a night. She'd need the rest for tomorrow.


	2. Initiation

Initiation

* * *

Raven

Raven opened her locker and checked over Quoth Shadow. She had to make sure everything was in order for Initiation. She looked at her twin brother next to her, who was double checking Reaper.

"So how are we going to find each other?" she asked him.

"What?" Qrow asked, confused, still checking over his weapon.

"In the forest, so we can be on the same team," she clarified. "Should we have a signal or something?"

"We're not going to be on the same team," Qrow said bluntly.

"Excuse me?" Raven asked, a little shocked.

"We're not going to be on the same team," he repeated.

"Like hell we're not!" she replied, visibly angry. "Why wouldn't we be on the same team?"

"Raven, you're the definition of antisocial. Meeting people besides me will be good for you."

"Doubtful. Other people will just slow me down," she argued. "It's bad enough I have to deal with two of these weaklings, it won't even be tolerable without you."

"I rest my case. You rely too much on me."

"I rely on no one!" she hissed.

"It doesn't matter if you do or don't, either way you're stuck with the same team for four years. Learning to get along with people that aren't me will ensure that you survive those four years."

"Fine, I don't need you anyway!" Raven huffed. "I might as well say I'm working alone, because I'll be carrying my team! I alone will be the one to beat whatever team you get stuck with!"

"How are you going to beat my entire team when you can't even beat me?" Qrow teased.

"That's why we're here isn't it? To get stronger?" Raven shot back, wearing a smirk of her own.

"Would all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for Initiation. Repeat, all first year students, please report immediately," said Professor Goodwitch's voice over the intercom.

"That's our cue," said Qrow. The twins walked with the crowd of other students to Beacon Cliff, overlooking the Emerald Forest. The students all stood in a line on metal platforms in the ground. Raven scanned the other students, looking for anyone that showed at least some potential as a teammate for her. There was the blonde boy from the docks yesterday, but Raven didn't want anything to do with him. There was also a shorter girl that wore a white hood, she looked pretty weak though. Once they were all in line, Professor Ozpin briefed them.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," he explained.

"Regarding any rumors on teams," Glynda chimed in. "You will all be assigned teams today."

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well," Ozpin continued. Raven threw an angry glare at her brother, who seemed fascinated by a bird behind Ozpin. "That said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy anything in your path… or you will die." Raven smiled at this, she loved a challenge. "You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics.

"Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?" After a moment of silence Ozpin continued. "Good. Now take your positions."

One by one, students were catapulted into the forest. The blonde kid, then the girl in the white hood, going down the line. Qrow winked at Raven before he was flung into the sky, Raven following him shortly afterward. As she was falling, Raven activated her Semblance, transforming into a raven. She looked at her brother, and noticed that he did the same, before quickly losing him as he disappeared into the forest.

 _First person I make eye contact with, huh?_ Raven thought to herself. _Easy then, I just need to find Qrow before anyone else does. Then he'll have no choice, and I'll have one less idiot to deal with._ Raven dove downwards, breaking through the canopy of the forest before reverting to her human form on landing. She began making her way toward where she lost Qrow, deciding to start her search there.

The path that she followed led her to a clearing. As she got to the center of it, she noticed something. It was quiet. No animal or insect noises whatsoever. The only thing present was a dark energy surrounding the area, making Raven feel tense. She gripped Quoth Shadow, and spun her chamber to select a red blade. She widened her stance, waiting for whatever dark presence was around her to attack.

An Ursa burst from the trees to her left flank. Raven dodged a claw swipe aimed for her head, and sliced the Grimm with her fiery blade as she drew her odachi. She twirled the telescopic blade as it extended to full length, wielding the weapon in a two-handed grip. The Ursa was agitated by it's newly formed wound, and charged at Raven. She sidestepped the beast, and swung her blade beneath the monster's torso. Raven pulled Quoth Shadow's trigger, igniting the dust on the blade, cutting effortlessly through the large Grimm.

With the beast now bisected, Raven sheathed Quoth Shadow to equip a new Dust Blade. As she did so, an entire pack of Beowolves emerged from the forest surrounded her.

 _Ozpin wasn't kidding when he said opposition, I got my work cut out for me here,_ she thought as she planned out her next move. Then one by one, the beasts began dropping, as if someone were shooting them. As Raven looked closer, she could see bullet impacts and blood as each Beowolf went down. As the last beast fell, Raven stayed on edge. She listened closely, trying to locate where the bullets came from.

"I know you're here!" she called out, still listening for a response. As she focused, she felt a presence behind her. She drew Quoth Shadow and lashed out toward it, only for her Blade to meet resistance, against the air. There was the familiar _clang_ of a sword connecting to another, and a short moment after the contact, a voice spoke out.

"I saw how you landed, and how you handled that Ursa," a woman's voice spoke. "Color me impressed."

"Who are you?" Raven asked, very confused. "Show yourself!" Not a second later, something formed in front of Raven. As the image faded into her view, she was able to make out white. The girl with the white cloak from before.

"My name's Summer," she introduced herself as she finished appearing.

"You were marking me?" Raven asked.

"You seemed like someone who would make a good partner," Summer explained. "Don't think I didn't see you sizing me up on the cliff."

"Observant, stealthy, and judging by how you blocked my blade, capable," Raven analyzed. "I guess not everyone here is a total weakling."

"So what do you say?" Summer asked, extending her hand. "Partners?" Raven thought about it for a moment.

 _The first person you make eye contact with,_ she thought. Raven had already looked at Summer's silver eyes several times in this conversation. _Might as well._ Raven took Summer's hand and agreed. "Partners."

"Sounds good!" Summer said happily. "Now we've got some ground to cover to the temple, so let's get going…"

"Raven," she finished for Summer. Now being properly introduced, the newly formed partnership followed the path toward the temple.

* * *

Qrow

Qrow sunk his blade into the stomach of a Boarbatusk, and kept moving. He couldn't stay in one place too long and give Raven the chance to find him. He had to partner up before she found him.

 _If I'm lucky, she's already found a partner,_ he thought. It's not that he didn't want to be on Raven's team, he just thought that Raven needed to learn to get along with other people. She had always been impatient, not wanting to deal with anyone that she deemed to be beneath her. It's a dangerous way of thinking. Qrow thought that coming to Beacon would teach her that there's more to being a Huntress than becoming more powerful. Raven needed to learn that the power that she craved so much, needed to be used to protect the "weaklings" she hated.

Qrow heard a yell, bringing him out of his thoughts, in time to see a Beowulf carcass flying at him. He ducked under the dead beast, and looked for it's killer, locking onto two blue eyes.

"You've got to be kidding me," he muttered as he realized who he just made eye contact with. It was the blonde kid that was creeping on Raven yesterday.

"You! Qrow was it?" he asked. "Thank god, I thought I'd never find a partner!"

"Nope," Qrow said bluntly as he walked away.

"Nope!?" the kid yelled. "What do you mean 'nope?' The rules state that we're teammates now!"

"Screw the rules, I'm not partnering up with some creep!" Qrow replied without turning around.

"I'm not a creep! I was just looking at her sword!" the kid yelled, growing more angry.

"Does it look like I care? Go find someo-" an exploding tree ahead of Qrow interrupted him, and caused him to stop. Qrow turned around to see the kid, only now his right arm was outstretched encased in a golden gauntlet. "You really want to do this?"

"We're partners now, and if I have to beat that into you, then so be it," the kid threatened.

"Alright then," Qrow said, drawing Reaper. "Make my day."

The kid charged Qrow, pulling his right arm back for a punch. Qrow brought Reaper up to block, only to be knocked backwards by the explosion that the gauntlet caused. A little dazed, Qrow got up to see the kid in a martial arts stance, his palms cupped together. Qrow could see a little ball forming in the kid's hands, and with a thrust of his arms, fired a blast of energy toward Qrow. He dodged the blast, and charged forward, converting Reaper into it's scythe form.

With Reaper's added speed, Qrow unleashed a barrage of attacks at the kid, with the latter blocking most of them with his gauntlet and getting some punches in with his left hand. After a few successful blows, the kid punched the ground with his gauntlet, hoping to knock Qrow off guard with the explosion. Qrow leaped over him, using the force of the explosion to propel himself higher, and fired his shotguns at the other. He took the hits, and charged at Qrow, who adopted a defensive stance upon landing. Qrow blocked the incoming gauntlet, diverting the fist away from him to avoid causing an explosion. With the two weapons locked, Qrow smirked at the kid.

"Not bad at all," Qrow admitted.

"A scythe that can turn into a greatsword and has dual 10-gauge shotguns attached to it. To wield a weapon like that, you're not so bad yourself," the other complimented.

"You could tell the gauge of my shotguns just by taking the hits? Now I'm impressed," Qrow said, disengaging from the lock and sheathing Reaper. "I don't think we need to waste any more energy, do we? Partner?" The other smiled, and took Qrow's outstretched hand as his gauntlet retreated back into his shoulder pauldron.

"You were testing me, weren't you?" he asked.

"Had to see if you'd be able to keep up with me," Qrow admitted. "I don't think we'll have a problem. You know my name, what's yours?"

"Taiyang," the other introduced himself.

"Well alright, Taiyang," Qrow said. "Let's get moving."

* * *

Summer

Summer and Raven broke through the treeline into a clearing, where a very large stone building stood.

"Think this is the temple we're supposed to look for?" Summer asked.

"Obviously," Raven said bluntly, walking toward the temple.

 _What's her deal?_ Summer thought. _Is she this abrasive to everyone? It's going to be a long 4 years if she doesn't lighten up._ Summer had tried making small talk with Raven throughout the entire journey, with Raven responding with one-word answers, or nothing at all.

"You coming?" Raven called back, bringing Summer back to the present. She followed her partner toward the temple, and found 24 pedestals, some with strange wooden objects on them.

"What are these?" Summer asked as she examined them. Each one was hand carved and in the shape of an animal. "Totems?"

"Some are missing," Raven pointed out. "We're late."

"What makes you say that," Summer asked, confused. "It's not like we have a time limit."

"We weren't here first," Raven explained. "Others are ahead of us, therefore we're late." Raven hastily grabbed a bird totem. "We've wasted enough time, let's head back to the cliff."

"Okay seriously, what's your deal?" Summer finally snapped. "Do you have a complex or something?"

"Pardon me?" Raven asked angrily.

"We're supposed to be partners, and you won't even give me the time of day!" Summer argued. "And now you're acting like someone finishing before you is the end of the world! Is this going to be a regular thing?"

"Small talk on missions is a waste of time and energy," Raven shot back. "And I will not tolerate weaklings surpassing me in any form, like finishing this mission before me. So if you're done wasting any more of my time-"

Sudden crashing and yelling from the treeline interrupted Raven. The two girls looked toward the source to find two men, one with blonde hair, one with black, running toward the temple, being tailed by a Goliath.

"Qrow?" Raven shouted.

"Taiyang?" Summer mirrored.

Taiyang turned and jumped toward the Grimm, swinging with Dragon Fist and scoring a solid hit to the monster's jaw. It only became agitated, quickly whipping it's tusk back, nailing Taiyang. Qrow turned around and fired a few shots from Reaper, turning the beast's attention away from Tai. The Goliath roared before charging at Qrow, who managed to dodge and get a slash in with Reaper, doing minimal damage to the monster's hide.

"We have to help them!" Summer exclaimed, starting toward them.

"We don't have to do anything," Raven said, stopping Summer by the shoulder. "Qrow can handle this."

"Your plan is to sit here and potentially watch your brother and my friend die!?" Summer yelled in disbelief.

"No, my plan is to complete the mission as soon as possible. This isn't our problem," Raven explained.

"WAKE UP!" Summer yelled, having enough of Raven's attitude. "I don't know why you think you're here, but I'm here to become a Huntress! And being a Huntress means helping people that need it, especially against the Grimm! So go, finish your precious mission! I'm going to stay here, do my _job_ , and help the people that need it!" Summer turned around and charged toward the others, leaving Raven in a stunned silence.

Summer drew Silent Thorn in pistol mode, firing her pistols at the beast to draw it's attention. As the monster reared it's head and locked eyes with Summer, she activated her Semblance, turning invisible. Now having the upper hand, Summer slashed with her swords at the Goliath's legs, before jumping up and getting some cuts into the nape of it's neck.

In it's wild thrashing, the monster's trunk managed to find an invisible Summer, knocking her to the ground and deactivating her Semblance. Summer got up in a daze, shaking her head to clear it. She noticed Taiyang and Qrow back in the fray, Taiyang still throwing haymakers at the monster's head, with Qrow slashing at any exposed flesh.

Summer noticed the Grimm's bone mask starting to crack under Taiyang's blows. She looked for more weaknesses on the monster, and noticed the damage she did on it's neck.

 _A few solid slashes on it's neck could behead it,_ she thought. _I don't have enough Aura left to safely use my Semblance, how do I create an opening?_ The Goliath managed to swipe Qrow and Taiyang with it's trunk, hurtling them in Summer's direction. Taiyang groaned as they got up.

"Man, this thing's _tough_ ," he said.

"Yeah," Qrow agreed. "I can't seem to do any significant damage."

"I have a plan," Summer stated. "I managed to do a number on it's neck. If you guys can create an opening, I might be able to finish it."

"I don't know, Summer," Taiyang cautioned. "I'm not doing so hot on Aura."

"Same here," Qrow agreed. "Can your blades get that in one cut? I think we'd only get one shot."

"Not her's alone," a voice said behind them. Summer looked behind her to find Raven walking up to the group. "Both of ours can though."

"Raven, what are you doing?" Summer asked, shocked by Raven's presence.

"My job," Raven said, smirking at Summer. Summer nodded at Raven, smiling.

"Right. Qrow, I need you to stun it and keep it distracted. Tai, Raven and I could use a boost. Raven, you and I will handle the rest. Everyone got it?" Summer explained.

"Got it!" the other three confirmed.

"Alright," said Summer. "Go!"

Qrow charged forward, firing shots at the Goliath's eyes, one shot blinding it's left one. Qrow then stabbed into the crack in the bone mask and pulled on Reaper, making the beast buckle from the pain. The girls got in position, and Taiyang punched the ground, using the explosion to propel the girls toward the monster.

Summer swung Raven upwards into the sky, and then took another slash at the Goliath's neck as she passed over it, deepening the wound. High above the Goliath, Raven drew Quoth Shadow, and readied it as she plummeted toward the monster. Right above the target, she swung with all her might downward, pulling the trigger to ignite the Dust Blade, cutting clean through what remained of the Goliath's neck, beheading the monster.

After confirming that the Grimm was dead, Summer, Taiyang, and Qrow collapsed from exhaustion, all of their Aura nearly depleted. Raven chuckled at all of them.

"I'm amazed that you all have the time to lay down, since we all still have a mission to complete," she stated.

"Oh crap! She's right!" Taiyang said as he bolted upwards. "Qrow, grab a relic! We gotta go!"

"Right!" Qrow said as he took off toward the temple, grabbing the other bird totem.

* * *

The four of them waited in Beacon's main hall, during the Team Formation Ceremony. Professor Ozpin was on the stage, announcing the teams and their leaders. It was the group's turn now, as Ozpin called off their names.

"Qrow Branwen, Raven Branwen, Summer Rose, and Taiyang Xiao Long." Ozpin called as the four lined up on-stage. "You four collected the Eagle Totems. From this day forward, you shall be known as Team STRQ, led by Summer Rose." Summer's eyes widened, surprised by her newly-appointed position. She looked at her new team. Taiyang, of course, was giving her an excited thumbs-up. Qrow was smirking approvingly at her. And, surprisingly, Raven looked proud of her partner. Summer smiled excitedly.

Who knew what adventures lay ahead for her and her team?

* * *

 **Thanks for reading everybody! Man, this was a fun one. These were my first action scenes ever written, and I think they turned out okay. You guys have been crazy supportive of this story after just one chapter, thank you all so much! It really means a lot to me! Anyways, next time we'll see how Team STRQ starts off their adventures as a team! See you guys later!**


	3. Welcome to Beacon

Welcome to Beacon

* * *

Raven

Raven's eyes shot open as she realized she was in a strange bed. She scanned the room, and noticed the white ceiling and walls, with four desks and several bookshelves lining the walls.

 _That's right_ , she remembered. _Beacon._ She looked at the bed next to her own and saw her brother, still sleeping. She grabbed her scroll off of the nightstand to check the time. _6:30._

Raven sat up, deciding that going back to sleep would do more harm than good. She looked to the other side of the room. Taiyang was also asleep, snoring slightly. Raven's partner, however, was not in her bed. Raven looked over to find Summer at her desk, her scroll propped up in tablet mode, surfing the CCT.

Summer must have heard Raven, as she turned around and smiled at the latter. Raven got up out of bed and walked over to Summer.

"Morning, partner!" Summer greeted in a low voice.

"You're up early," Raven replied.

"I could say the same. I'm a morning person, the earlier I get up, the more time I have to spend in the day," Summer explained.

"What are you looking at?" Raven asked, regarding Summer's scroll.

"Some possible upgrades to Silent Thorn," she answered, motioning toward her swords on her desk. "I was going to talk to Tai later about a new material for the blades. I don't like that I had that much trouble cutting that Goliath."

"Goliath hides are extraordinarily tough, even Qrow had trouble damaging it, and he's got the sharpest blade on the continent," Raven reasoned. "I was only able to finish it because of the damage you already dealt, and my Dust blades."

"Can't wait to hear the barrage of questions from Tai about your sword," Summer said as she looked at the snoring blonde boy. Summer's face turned hard though, and she turned back to Raven. "Speaking of which, what changed?"

"I don't follow," Raven said, confused.

"In the forest, you barely tolerated me. You would barely speak to me, and you were dead set on finishing the mission as soon as possible. What changed?" Summer explained. Raven thought about it for a moment.

"You earned my respect in the forest, Summer," Raven answered. "The way you spoke up to me, and the way you charged toward almost certain death to help someone who needed it. I'll admit, I may have been a bit clouded. Your speech about being a Huntress opened my eyes.

"I came to Beacon to become a Huntress. My goal in life is to become the most powerful Huntress in all of Remnant. I let that goal blind me though. You reminded me that if I want to be the best, I need to do the job right."

"Good to know we're going to get along," Summer said, smiling at Raven's answer. "Is that why you didn't object to me being appointed leader? I was a little worried you'd resent me for it."

"Ozpin made his choice," Raven said. "He must have seen that Team STRQ needed a leader that knew what it was all about. I agreed with his choice."

"Thanks Raven," Summer said, still smiling. "That actually means a lot."

"What are friends for?" Raven said, smirking back.

"Friends?" Summer asked, a little shocked to hear Raven's voice speak the word.

"It's obvious that I can't make it through Beacon alone. It'd make it easier if I didn't hate everybody," Raven explained.

"Glad to hear it," Summer said, her smile growing. "The bathroom's open, you might want to get on that before the boys wake up. I can't imagine how long it takes to wash all that hair."

"Good point," Raven said, walking toward the bathroom. She took off her pajamas and stepped into the warm water.

 _Learning to get along with people will ensure you survive,_ Qrow's words echoed in her mind. _I guess I lucked out, with Qrow still ending up on my team and Summer turning out to be someone I can like,_ she thought as she finished up and turned off the water. _I just hope that Taiyang can improve on his first impression._

 _Maybe I was too quick to judge him,_ she thought as she started brushing her hair. _He certainly proved that he can handle himself, and Qrow accepted being his partner. I guess time will tell._ Raven finished her hair and put on her new school uniform. _A brown coat and a plaid skirt? Maybe I should've went to Haven, their uniform is at least my color._ She finished dressing and walked out of the bathroom, only to find her brother and Taiyang awake, with the four desk chairs rearranged in the center of the room. Qrow and Tai were in two of them, with Summer standing in front of the boys.

"Perfect!" Summer perked up as Raven entered. "Take a seat Raven, and we can get started!" Raven cautiously sat down between Taiyang and Qrow.

"What's this about, Summer?" the ebon-haired girl asked.

"This is Team STRQ's first official day as a team!" Summer explained. "We're going to be spending four years together, so I think we should get a jumpstart on getting to know each other!"

"Wasn't the forest enough?" Qrow said, clearly annoyed. "We've already shown that we can work together."

"Working together and being friends are two different things," Taiyang explained. "Summer's the leader, and if this is what she wants to do, then it's our duty to follow her orders."

"And it's going to be a rough four years if we can't all be friends," Summer finished.

"What do you think of this?" Qrow asked, turning to his sister.

"She's the leader," Raven said, shrugging, earning a surprised look from her brother. Knowing he was outnumbered, Qrow quit resisting.

"I'll get started," Summer said. "What we're going to do is introduce ourselves, since some of us have yet to have proper introductions. I'll go first. Hello Team STRQ, I'm Summer Rose! I attended Signal Academy, and I enjoy history!"

"Hello, Summer," Qrow and Tai droned in unison, mocking the intervention-like presentation of the meeting, and earning a smile from Raven. Summer huffed and took her seat next to Tai, who then got up to take his turn.

"Taiyang Xiao Long, slayer of women, wooer of evil!" he proclaimed proudly. "Wait…" he said as he realized his mistake. Summer bust out laughing at Taiyang's blunder, and Qrow rolled his eyes. Even Raven giggled a little bit.

 _He'll be entertaining, if anything,_ Raven thought to herself.

"Anyway," Taiyang continued, recovering from his mistake. "I was privately mentored on Patch, and I enjoy weapon maintenance." Summer and Raven clapped to get one last joke in on Taiyang, who then reclaimed his seat. Raven sighed as she stood up for her turn.

"Raven Branwen. No formal training, and I enjoy defeating my enemies," Raven said quickly, returning to her seat. _I really hope Summer doesn't make me do things like that often._ Qrow stood up to take his turn.

"I'm Qrow, no formal training for me, and I enjoy fighting," he introduced.

"We never finished our fight from the forest," Tai said, smirking at his partner.

"Anytime, Xiao Long! I don't think I need to worry about losing though, I'm not a woman for you to slay," Qrow snarked, earning another round of laughter from Summer and Raven.

"You're gonna talk smack!? Let's go then!" Tai said, jumping up in a fighting stance, only for Raven to force him back down.

"Please don't destroy the dorm room," she deadpanned, diffusing the situation. As Qrow sat back down, Summer stood up again.

"Great! I think we're off to a good start," she said happily. "Boys, once you get ready, I'll go over our schedule for today."

Qrow got to the bathroom first, leaving Tai with the girls. Summer started talking to him about weapon upgrades, while Raven took to her desk to inspect Quoth Shadow. She took the outer casing off of the sheath and counted her blades.

 _Two red blades gone, I'll have to stop in the workshop to make more,_ she thought to herself. She started to reassemble her sword as Qrow came out of the bathroom, Taiyang taking his turn.

"It's going to be a pain with all four of us sharing a bathroom," Qrow said to Summer.

"Sadly, there's not much I can do about that," Summer replied. "You'll just have to grin and bear it."

"What's wrong Qrow?" Raven teased. "Worried that you'll have to fight Taiyang for the bathroom?"

"I'm more worried about hot water with how long it'll take to wash that mane of yours," Qrow shot back.

"Oh man," Summer said, worriedly. "I didn't think the bathroom would start causing fights already." Qrow and Raven looked at each other for a moment, before turning back to Summer.

"We're not fighting," Qrow explained.

"You're not? Sounds like fighting to me," Summer replied.

"No, this is normal," Raven reassured. "If Qrow and I were to actually fight, we wouldn't have a bathroom to fight over anymore."

"Bickering and throwing jabs at each other is normal?" Summer asked, seeming more confused.

"I take it you're an only child?" Qrow asked, to which Summer nodded. "Well, I wouldn't be too worried about us, unless Raven draws her sword." Summer seemed to accept that, shrugging and dropping the subject. After another few minutes, Taiyang emerged from the bathroom.

"Okay, so what do we got going on?" he asked.

"Alright, schedule for today," Summer said as she checked her scroll. "Let's see, we all have Grimm Studies at 9:00, then lunchtime goes from 11:00 to 1:00, at 1:30 we have Combat, then at 3:00, Raven and I have History, while Tai and Qrow have Mechanics. After that is dinner, and then we're done for the day!"

"You didn't take history?" Raven asked Qrow.

"No, we did. That one must be divided by partners and we have it on a different day," Qrow explained.

"Well, it's 8:45 guys," Tai said. "Should we head to class?"

"Yep!" Summer cheered. "To classroom 636!"

* * *

Team STRQ entered the classroom and noticed the decorations first. All over the walls were various Grimm taxidermy heads.

"There's no way those are real, right?" Qrow asked Tai. He wasn't listening though. Tai was too busy admiring the weapon hanging at the front of the room.

"How does that thing work?" he asked no one in particular. "It's a blunderbuss… with battleaxe blades on the stock. Is it a gun? Is it an axe? Would shooting it chop your arm off? I don't get it."

"Why don't you give it a try, Tai?" Qrow joked. "Let us know what it's like having one arm."

The team took their seats, and not long after, the professor entered the room. He was a very short and pudgy man, looking to be in his mid 30's. He had graying hair, cut in a very symmetrical style, and a very bushy mustache.

"Welcome students! I am Professor Port!" he greeted the class. "Monsters! Demons! Prowlers of the night! The Creatures of Grimm are known throughout Remnant by many names. To many, they are the hunters. But to me, and every true Huntsman or Huntress, they are the hunted. I remember this one time in my village…"

 _Is this guy for real?_ Raven thought to herself as Port droned on. _He's actually taking up class time to boast about his accomplishments? What a joke._

"...and I was celebrated as a hero!" Port finished. "Now, a true Huntsman would show the courage and tenacity that I did. It is my understanding that we have a team in this class that has already shown the potential of becoming true Huntsmen and Huntresses. Team STRQ?" The four all widened their eyes at the sudden callout.

"Y-yes, Professor?" Summer asked, nervous from the sudden attention.

"If I read the reports correctly, you four brought down a Goliath during Initiation," Port explained. "Not an easy feat, even for much more hardened and experienced Huntsman, such as myself. Would you four please come down and explain how you did it? I'm sure the rest of the class could learn from such a story." The members of Team STRQ eyed each other for a moment before they complied. They all took their place at the front of the class. "Please, spare no small details!"

"O-okay, well, um," Summer stammered.

"Taiyang and I were heading toward the temple when we came across it," Qrow started, saving Summer. She threw him a grateful smile, and then prepared what she was going to say. "We tried outrunning it, but couldn't get away."

"Once we reached the clearing where the temple was located," Tai continued, "we tried fighting, having more of an advantage in an open area."

"Summer and I were already at the temple," Raven picked up. "We jumped in to help them."

"Taiyang managed to crack some of the Goliath's armor," Summer continued. "Qrow stabbed the crack to stun the Goliath, while the rest of us attacked it's neck, beheading it."

"Absolutely genius!" Port praised. "You see, students? This is the kind of cunning and strategic planning that every true Huntsman needs to master! With that, you can overcome any challenge! Please cover all of the assigned readings for next time, and remember! Stay vigilant! Class dismissed!" He turned to Team STRQ. "Team STRQ, I will be watching your progress with great interest. You all seem to possess the blood of true Huntsmen and Huntresses," he said, cocking an eyebrow and winking at Raven.

 _Oh, gross,_ she thought. _I hope he's not always that creepy._ The team left the class and headed to lunch.

* * *

"So that guy's a total weirdo, right?" Tai asked the rest of the group while they were eating.

"Yeah, who takes class time to talk about how awesome he is?" Summer agreed.

"Did you see the way he looked at me at the end?" Raven asked, shuddering at the memory. "If he does that again, he's going to learn firsthand what a Red Dust Blade tastes like."

A yell and some laughter grabbed the attention of the team, who all looked to the source. A dog Faunus was on the ground, covered in food, while four men stood above her.

"Go ahead, eat that food off of you like the bitch that you are!" the taller one, who Raven deduced was the leader, said to the Faunus, while his team laughed behind him.

"Why that little-" Tai said as he stood up, only to be stopped by his partner.

"Don't get involved," Qrow told him.

"What? Why not?" Tai asked in disbelief.

"It won't help her," Raven said. "That's not our battle, we can't fight it for her."

"They're right, Tai," Summer agreed. "This is a school for warriors. As much as I'd love to help her, she needs to learn to stand up for herself. Let her and her team handle it." Taiyang relented and sat back down with a huff, clearly not happy with letting them go.

"So, these are the Goliath slayers, Team STRQ, huh?" said a voice behind Tai and Qrow. The team looked up to see the bully from before.

"Who's asking?" Raven answered.

"Someone who thinks you all look too weak to be Goliath slayers," he said back, smirking. "Chandler Winchester of Team CMSN (crimson)."

"Cool. Now beat it," Tai said angrily.

"So, which one of you losers was the one that killed this so-called Goliath?" Chandler continued, ignoring Tai.

"I did," Raven said, also growing angry.

"That's cute, hot-stuff," Chandler replied, laughing. "But seriously, which one did it?"

"I already said that it was me," Raven growled.

"So no one's going to tell me?" Chandler continued.

"Look pal!" Tai shouted, standing up and getting in Chandler's face. "Raven's telling the truth! She was the one that beheaded it!"

"Well I guess it doesn't matter who it was, either way, we're still better," Chandler boasted.

"Care to prove that?" Taiyang threatened.

"Tai, cool it!" Summer pleaded.

"Do you have Combat next?" Chandler asked.

"Yeah, we do!" Tai argued. "I'll take on your entire team!"

"Tai!" Qrow interjected. "You can't-"

" _ **ENTIRE. TEAM."**_ Tai emphasized.

"Fine then, we'll see you in class," Chandler said smugly as he and his team walked away.

"Why'd you do that?" Raven asked him.

"No one treats my teammates like that," he reasoned. "Now it's our battle."

* * *

Team STRQ took their seats in the bleachers. Raven looked over and noticed Team CMSN already in their seats. After a minute, Professor Goodwitch walked in and greeted the class.

"Hello class, and welcome to Combat Training. I am Professor Goodwitch," she introduced herself.

 _Doesn't everyone know her already?_ Raven thought. _Formalities, I guess._

"Aren't you a bit young to be a combat instructor?" a student in the crowd asked.

"Well, if you must know," Goodwitch explained. "Professor Ozpin asked me to be the school's combat instructor immediately after my graduating. He thought my skills would be sufficient to educate the younger generations. Any other questions?" After a moment, Goodwitch continued.

"Good. Now, the majority of this class will be sparring and strategic training, as all of you should have mastered your weapons in Combat School. Sparring matches will adhere to tournament-style rules. Combatants will duel until one of them steps out of the ring, or until their Aura drops into the red. Do we have any volunteers for the first match?" Team CMSN all raised their hands. "Team CMSN? Thank you for volunteering. Anyone willing to be their opponents?"

Raven and Taiyang glanced at each other and smirked. Raven raised her hand.

"Ms… Branwen?" Glynda said, checking her scroll to check the name. "Are you volunteering your team?"

"No, I'm volunteering myself," Raven said.

"You wish to take on all of Team CMSN?" Goodwitch asked again.

"Yes I do," Raven confirmed.

"Hey, the blonde kid said he'd be the one to fight us!" Chandler complained. "What is he, some kind of coward?"

"No, I was the one you guys insulted, so I'll be the one you fight," Raven said as she entered the ring. "I'll show you how that Goliath felt when I beheaded it."

"Alright then," Glynda said, tapping on her scroll to focus the lights onto the ring and pull up Aura displays for the combatants. "Raven Branwen vs. Team CMSN. Let the match begin!"

Team CMSN charged at Raven, who assumed a defensive stance. Chandler swung a mace at her head, which she dodged, sweeping her leg to trip up her attacker. Chandler fell into one of his teammates, knocking them both down. The third member came at her with flurries from his daggers. Raven dodged and weaved her way around the knives, waiting for an opening. When one appeared, she put her hand-to-hand training to use, landing a combination of punches and disarming her opponent. She kicked him away, and he landed outside the ring. His Aura counter was grayed out, with the words "Ring-out" appearing over it.

The fourth member came at her with a greatsword. Raven smirked and drew Quoth Shadow, parrying the enormous blade in one motion. She used her superior speed to get the upper hand on the bigger man, slashing at any openings she could find, whittling down his aura.

Chandler and the second member jumped back into the fray, all three of them teaming up on Raven. She jumped and kicked off of the fourth member's sword, creating some distance. She sheathed Quoth Shadow again, spinning her chamber to select a yellow Dust Blade. Raven then lunged at the team, slicing with Quoth Shadow and pulling the trigger, igniting the yellow Dust. Electricity coursed through the three men, stunning them. Raven took the time to equip a red Dust Blade, and swung at the ground in front of them, causing an explosion. The force knocked them all backwards, out of the ring.

"And that's the match," Glynda said as Raven sheathed Quoth Shadow. "Well done Ms. Branwen. That was very impressive."

"Thank you, Professor," Raven said before starting back toward her team. As she passed Chandler, she leaned down and whispered; "Believe me now?"

* * *

 **Writing about Beacon life is going to be fun! And no, I couldn't resist the RvB reference. Also, Reddit, that Taiyang joke was for you, you crazy bastards. As always, thank you guys so much for reading. Remember to follow, favorite, and review! I'm going to go get started on the next chapter of If It Means a Lot to You.**


	4. Team Building

Team Building

* * *

Taiyang

 _If I loosen this bolt here, and shift this gear over, that should cut my deploy time down a bit,_ Taiyang thought as he worked on Dragon Fist. As he made his adjustments, however, Dragon Fist locked up. _Dammit, okay maybe not._ He heard the door close behind him, and he turned to see Raven entering the Weapons Workshop.

"Hey, Raven!" he greeted. "Where's Summer?"

"She went back to the dorm," the dark-haired girl answered. "I see Qrow did the same."

"Yeah, I wanted to stay and do a little work on Dragon Fist," he said, patting his gauntlet. "What are you doing here though? I thought you and Summer didn't take Mechanics."

"I need more Dust Blades," Raven answered. "I used 4 during initiation and when I fought CMSN."

"You forge your own blades?" Tai asked, a little impressed.

"It was always cheaper to buy Dust and make the blades myself then to have them forged for me," Raven explained, setting her sword on the workbench. "It also gives me a moment to relax and clear my head."

"Maintenance does that for me, too," Tai said as mhe walked toward her. "Hey, I'm sorry about what happened at the docks the other day. I may have been over excited and came on too strong. I hope it won't cause problems between us, it's going to be a long four years if it does." Raven looked at him for a moment before responding.

"I don't think it will," she said. "I'm sorry I punched you."

"Eh, it's fine," he said, smirking a little. "I guess I had it coming." Both of them chuckled at the joke before Taiyang continued. "So, now that I know you don't hate me, can I look at your sword?"

"I suppose," Raven said, moving aside for Taiyang to get a look.

"Whoa," he said as he unsheathed it. "A telescopic ōdachi with interchangeable Dust Blades. I'm guessing the trigger activates the Dust."

"That's right," Raven confirmed.

"This is awesome!" Tai said, examining the sword more. "Although, if I could make a critique…"

"Critique about what?" Raven said, a bit of hostility in her voice.

"I was just going to say that you could save a lot of Dust and Lien if you'd make a single blade, with interchangeable Dust edges," Tai explained before Raven got mad again. "It'd be cheaper, easier to make, and have the same effect as a Dust Blade."

"I've thought about it," Raven admitted. "Except that having the entire blade made of Dust also allows me to color-code my blades, so I always know which one I'm selecting." Taiyang thought for a moment.

"How about this?" he asked. "Dust coatings instead of blades. If you modify your sheath a little, you could have coatings that cover the blade in Dust. They use less Dust, and the same blade. And they fit in with color-coding, since they'd look like blades."

"That's actually a great idea," Raven admitted, shooting Tai an impressed look. "It's going to take some modification, and I'd have to dismantle my existing blades. That's a lot to do in one night for one person."

"Are you asking me for help?" Taiyang asked, smiling at her.

"I'm just saying that I wouldn't be opposed to having an assistant on this job, if he should choose to help," Raven answered, a smug smirk on her face.

"Well," Taiyang said as he turned to the workbench, "he'd love to help."

* * *

Summer

Summer put her scroll next to the electronic lock, unlocking the door to her dorm room. She found Qrow sitting at his desk, with the holoscreen on over the window, tuned to a news station.

"Hey Qrow," Summer greeted as she entered.

"Hey," was all he responded with.

"Where's Taiyang?" Summer asked.

"He stayed behind in the workshop, said something about upgrades," Qrow explained.

"Maybe Raven will run into him, she said she was heading down there," Summer said as she sat in her chair. "I didn't peg you as the 'news-watching' type."

"A Huntsman should be up on current events, shouldn't he?" Qrow answered. "Just wish the real news wasn't overshadowed by political BS."

"I feel ya," Summer replied, knowing the feeling. "Don't like politics either, huh?"

"Or military," Qrow said. "They think they're so special over in Atlas. More like entitled pricks being bossed around by more entitled pricks. I couldn't handle losing my freedom like that."

"What do you mean?" Summer asked, a bit confused by the answer.

"Huntsmen and Huntresses aren't bound by anything," he explained. "They only serve the people and themselves, in that order. Atlas decided to throw that out the window, turning the Atlas academy into Hunter boot camp. They're not real Hunters, they're puppets of their Commander-in-Chief, who also happens to be their Headmaster and Government figurehead. It's more of a dictatorship than a Kingdom."

"So that's why you want to be a Huntsman?" Summer asked. "To be free?"

"I'm already free," Qrow said, smirking at her. "Huntsmen make more than mercenaries do, though."

"So you're in it for the money?" Summer replied, a little disappointed by his answer.

"God no, more than a mercenary is still not a lot," he explained, chuckling. "I want to be a Huntsman because it's the perfect fit for me. I get to live my free lifestyle, while using my skills to make Remnant a better place. That sounds like the perfect deal to me."

"Before, you and Raven said that you guys had no formal training. What did you guys do before you came to Beacon?" Summer asked. Qrow's smile faded, and his eyes seemed to lose focus for a moment, before he recovered.

"Stories for another time, Summer," Qrow said, his smirk returning. "After all, we just met formally."

"Oh yeah, I guess you're right," Summer giggled. "I think this is our first actual conversation together."

"Well, if they're always as pleasant as this, I'm excited to have more," Qrow said, winking at her. Summer felt her heart skip a beat at the wink, but she couldn't place what exactly caused it.

"Breaking news!" the newscaster said, gaining the Hunters' attention. "We have just received reports that a massive increase of Grimm activity in Mountain Glenn has led to an all-time high in civilian casualties. The Vale Council has decided to move the settlement to the Mountain Glenn caverns, to ensure the safety of the civilians. More Hunters are being contracted as security for the construction of the underground settlement."

"Oh no, Dad!" Summer said as she frantically pulled out her scroll and selected her father's number.

"What's wrong, Summer?" Qrow asked, his voice heavy with concern.

"My Dad works in Mountain Glenn!" Summer explained as she put the scroll to her ear. "Please pick up, Dad, please pick up!"

" _Summer?"_ said her father's voice over the scroll.

"Dad? Are you okay? I just saw the news about Mountain Glenn and-"

" _Summer! Summer! Calm down, I'm alright!"_ her father reassured. " _The Hunters on-duty were able to evacuate everyone safely underground. The only bad thing for me is that my day job just got a lot darker._ " Summer and her father both chuckled at the joke, Summed being extremely relieved that he was well.

"Okay, Dad, I'm glad you're okay. Just, please be safe, okay?" Summer said, her voice cracking a bit.

" _I will, sweetie, and you should too. How was your first day of classes?_ "

"It was… eventful. I'll have a full report for you later," Summer said, her nerves relaxing. "I gotta go, I love you, Dad!"

" _I love you too, honey. And I'll be waiting on that report!"_ Summer giggled at her father again before hanging up.

"Everything okay?" Qrow asked.

"Yeah, he's okay," Summer said, relieved. "Although I don't know how I feel about him working underground."

"What does your father do that would have him working in such a dangerous location?" Qrow said. "Is he a Huntsman?"

"No, he's a researcher at Merlot Industries," Summer explained. "They're based out there because of the high Grimm concentration. Merlot is one of the leading Grimm research companies, and being close to a high Grimm population makes it just a bit easier to research, on account of Grimm dying in captivity."

"Don't you worry about him?" Qrow asked.

"Every day," Summer answered, her face softening. "But then I remember that he works one-on-one with Hunters everyday, and I know they'll keep him safe. They've demonstrated that today."

"I see," Qrow said, thinking for a moment. "Question."

"Shoot," Summer said happily.

"Why do you want to be a Huntress?" Summer thought for a moment, looking for the right words.

"Well, I don't really know, I guess," Summer admitted. "It just feels, right, you know? Like, I know that I'll be living a full, happy life by becoming one, and helping people that need me."

"Well, when it's put that way, you and I aren't so different," Qrow chuckled out. Summer thought for a moment, before noticing the similarity of their answers.

"Oh yeah!" Summer laughed out. "I guess you're right!" After a few moments, the door opened, with Raven and Taiyang entering the room.

"What's up guys?" Tai asked as they entered.

"Not much," Summer asked. "You guys upgraded your weapons?"

"Well," Tai said, deflating. "The upgrades I wanted to make ended up being a wash. Raven, on the other hand, made some significant changes," he explained, with Raven holding up her sword and winking.

"What kind of changes?" Qrow asked.

"I won't be spending nearly as much Lien on blades, now," Raven said. "I now only use one blade, and I have Dust coatings for the elemental edge."

"Impressive," Qrow said.

"Anyway," Raven said as she set her sword on her desk, "do you have any more 'team bonding' activities planned? If so, I'd like to get them over with as soon as possible." Summer thought for a moment.

"Nah," she said, earning a surprised look from her partner. "After talking with Qrow, and seeing you two getting along fine, I realized that you can't rush or force this kind of thing. I'm sure we'll be fine just by being together."

"Good," Raven said, sitting down on her bed. "This morning was something else."

"I found it entertaining," Qrow said, throwing a teasing smirk toward Taiyang, who remained oblivious.

"There is something I want to take care of though!" Summer said.

"What would that be?" Taiyang asked.

"This dorm room is boring," Summer said, looking at the walls.

"How is it boring?" Raven asked.

"It's just so… uniform," Summer explained. "Bland. Perfect symmetry with the furniture, bare white walls, I think we should give it some Team STRQ personality!"

"Some of us could probably use some extra personality," Qrow snarked at Raven, who shot a glare at him.

"Everyone, pick a corner!" Summer ordered. "Move your bed and desk to the corner, and then decorate at will!"

Summer and Raven took the corners closest to the window, with Raven shifting her bed to where Qrow's was, and moving her desk to take her bed's previous spot. Summer moved her desk to the spot where Taiyang's bed was, making a mirror of Raven's corner. Tai and Qrow took the corners closest to the door, with Taiyang on the left, across from Summer, and Qrow on the right, across from Raven. The arranged their bed and desks exactly as Summer and Raven did.

"Guys!" Summer said. "I wanted to do this to get rid of the symmetry! It's still symmetrical!"

"This is the only way we could do it without blocking the doors or taking up floor space in the center," Taiyang reasoned.

"Well, I guess," Summer said as she scanned the room, seeing what Taiyang meant. The team then proceeded to decorate their corners. Summer hung posters of famous Hunters on her walls, while Raven hung a weapon plaque above her desk, hanging Quoth Shadow on it. Qrow set up a personal CCT terminal on his desk, and Taiyang put an armor stand next to his desk, placing Dragon Fist on it's shoulder. After the teammates made some other minor cosmetic changes to their parts of the room, they all stepped back to admire their handiwork.

"Team STRQ, Mission Complete!" Summer cheered as she admired the team's new, not-boring dorm room.

"It looks good!" Taiyang agreed proudly.

"It does feel more open," Raven said, regarding the center of the room.

"Great job, Team!" Summer cheered again. "Next Mission… bedtime!" She said as she flopped on her bed. "I'm beat, today was a long one!" The other members of Team STRQ groaned in agreement, the toll of the the first day of classes weighing on them. "We got another one tomorrow, guys, so we need to rest. Goodnight!"

Team STRQ

Mission: Survive the First Day of Class

Status: Complete

* * *

 **Shorter chapter this time, wanted to focus on the team members a bit more with this one. As always, thank you all so much for reading! Remember to follow, fav, and review, love all the feedback I've been getting on this story! See you later!**


	5. Qualifiers

Qualifiers

* * *

Summer

"Come on, Summer!" Raven pleaded. "You can turn invisible! Just sneak into the bleachers and take notes!"

"I'm not going to use my Semblance to cheat, Raven!" Summer argued. "Besides, Professor Goodwitch is crazy powerful! If I snuck in there, she might sense my Aura or something!"

"I don't know about that," Taiyang interjected. "Aura sensing is a pretty rare skill. It would take a lot for her to be able to do that."

"How old is she, 22?" Qrow asked. "To be a Professor at her age, she must be something special. She can probably hear us talking all the way out here."

"Regardless, I'm not doing it," Summer asserted. "Why don't you and Qrow do it? Crows are inconspicuous."

"Not in an indoor arena, they're not!" Raven shot back.

"If your Aura-sensing theory is true, she'd know it was us," Qrow said.

"Why do we want to spy on the competition, anyway?" Tai asked. "I'd prefer a good, random fight!"

"I want to know what's in store for us when we try for Qualifiers," Raven said. "If we can one-up a team that gets in, they'll let us compete without question."

"But!" Summer argued. "If we get caught spying, we won't be able to compete in this tournament or the the next!"

"Summer's right, sis," Qrow said, turning to Raven. "It's not worth losing the ability to compete if we can't use the advantage we'd gain." Raven huffed and leaned against the wall next to Qrow.

"C'mon Raven, lighten up!" Tai said. "I heard that Team CMSN already qualified, we should be a shoo-in!"

"Exactly," Qrow agreed. "If that idiot Winchester got in, it should be easy."

"What do you think the qualifying test is, anyway?" Summer asked. As if on cue, the previous team walked out of the arena, defeated looks on their faces, followed by Professor Goodwitch.

"Better luck next time, SRLT (scarlet)," she said to the leaving team before turning to the other four. "Team STRQ, you're up next. Miss Branwen, I do hope you don't actually intend to cheat."

Raven's face flushed and her eyes widened, causing the other three to double over from laughter. After taking a moment to enjoy her laughing students, she motioned the team to follow her into the arena. Team STRQ lined up in front of her to receive instructions.

"Team STRQ," Goodwitch began, "this will be your qualifying test to determine whether or not you may participate in the 29th Vytal Festival Tournament in Vacuo. As you may know, 8 teams from each Academy may qualify to participate, Beacon has already chosen 7. Your test will be to engage me in combat. I will evaluate your performance, and determine whether or not you will go to Vacuo."

"So we just have to beat you?" Raven asked.

"No," Goodwitch answered. "You will fight me. You will not win." Summer saw Raven's jaw harden. In the couple of months that they had been a team, Summer learned a lot about her partner. One thing that quickly angered Raven was being told that something was outside her ability.

Qrow seemed to pick up on that as well, since he nudged Raven and gave her a stern look, causing Raven to relax. Summer also learned that the Branwen siblings were masters of nonverbal communication, she reasoned that they had been practically inseparable most of their lives. You learn each other inside-out when that much time is spent together.

"You may come at me when ready, students," Goodwitch said. The team drew their weapons and adopted their combat stances, analyzing their opponent. Glynda didn't move a muscle, waiting patiently for the others to make the first move.

 _She's not in a combat stance,_ Summer thought. _How quick are her reflexes? What can she defend from?_ Deciding to test the waters, Summer formulated a plan.

"Hidden Dragon," Summer commanded. Taiyang fired a blast of his Aura from Dragon Fist at Glynda's feet, hoping to catch her off guard. As the smoke rose from the impact, Summer activated her Semblance, turning invisible and charging toward Glynda. She unleashed a flurry of attacks toward the Professor, but despite Summer being invisible, the Huntress was able to avoid each strike, before countering one and knocking Summer into the air. Summer back-flipped and landed on her feet, shifting her strategy.

"Swords Dance!" she commanded, calling the Branwens into the fray. The three blade-wielders attacked together, three fighting styles overwhelming Glynda. The students managed to get a few hits in this time, before Goodwitch unleashed a wave of energy, distancing the students from herself.

Summer transformed Silent Thorn into pistol mode, taking a few shots as she descended. Glynda channeled her Aura to her hands, moving them to block the shots. Summer landed, and tried to formulate another plan.

"Dragon Reaper!" she called out. Qrow converted Reaper into it's scythe form, and rushed Glynda. He kept Glynda distracted while Taiyang came up behind the Professor, focusing his Aura into Dragon Fist.

"That won't be enough!" Raven exclaimed. Summer thought ahead though.

"Rosebird," Summer said. Raven nodded and activated her Semblance, taking off into the air. Summer jumped up after her, and when she got close, Raven changed back to her Human form, grabbing Summer and flinging her higher. Raven changed back, following Summer upwards. When Raven caught up, she once again turned Human, this time Summer grabbed her and hurled her toward Glynda.

Taiyang saw his opening, and threw a haymaker at Glynda with Dragon Fist. Glynda managed to block the punch, but didn't anticipate the explosion, knocking her backwards. As Glynda recovered, she failed to notice Raven hurtling toward her. Raven drew and slashed at Glynda with a red-coated Quoth Shadow, pulling the trigger to ignite the Dust. The blade connected with Glynda, causing another explosion, knocking Glynda out of the ring.

Glynda sat up and stared at Team STRQ in awed silence, completely shocked that a team of first-year students was able to defeat her. The silence was broken by the sound of someone clapping. The five of them looked to the bleachers to find Professor Ozpin applauding them.

"Well, Team STRQ," he said, standing up and heading toward the staircase to meet them on the floor. "I must say, that was very impressive. Although, I suppose as much should be expected from the team that brought down a Goliath during Initiation.

"As you may have wondered, Glynda is extremely young to be a Professor here at beacon. I handpicked her as my assistant because, despite her age, she is one of the most talented Huntresses to ever graduate from Beacon. You four being able to best her as first-year students is nothing short of exemplary. I do hope that you will represent Beacon in such a way during your time in Vacuo."

"So we qualified?" Summer asked excitedly.

"I don't believe I could deny you after that performance," Glynda said. "Team STRQ will be Beacon's 8th competing team in the 29th Vytal Festival Tournament." Summer jumped and cheered in excitement, before nearly tackling Raven in a hug. Raven looked ready to protest at first, but decided to let her partner have her moment of excitement. Qrow and Taiyang gave each other a fist bump to celebrate.

"You will have one more month of classes here at Beacon," Ozpin continued. "You will then spend two months studying at Vacuo's Shade Academy before classes break for the Tournament. I suggest you use this month to prepare for the Tournament."

"Yes, Professor!" the team said together.

"Very good," Ozpin said, smiling. "Now, you four may enjoy the rest of your weekend." Ozpin and Glynda turned around and left the arena, with Team STRQ heading the other direction toward their dorm.

"We did it guys!" Summer cheered as they entered their room. "We're going to compete in the Vytal Festival Tournament!"

"Yes, Summer, we were there," Raven said, starting to get annoyed by Summer's celebration.

"Oh let her have her fun," Qrow said. "She earned it."

"Guys, am I the only person more shocked by the fact that we beat Professor Goodwitch?" Taiyang asked.

"Yes, because we didn't," Raven said bluntly.

"What do you mean?" Taiyang asked, confused.

"C'mon Tai, you know better than that," Qrow answered. "Ozpin said that Goodwitch is one of the most powerful Huntresses on Remnant. There's no way we could've beaten her if she was doing anything more than evaluating us."

"Qrow's right," Summer said. "Besides, we shouldn't let something like that get to our heads. We have a tournament to prepare for!"

* * *

Raven

The month after the qualifiers passed by in an instant. Summer had the team on rigorous training regimens. Raven had to admit, since she met Summer, the petite redhead was only improving in her leadership skills. As she thought about it, Raven realized that her relationship with her teammates was a lot different than she anticipated. When she came to Beacon, she thought her teammates would be insufferable weaklings. But in their first few months at Beacon, Raven learned to trust them, work with them, even like them.

Taiyang was a very different person than she initially thought. He was very thoughtful, smart, and compassionate. He may be a little hot-headed, but he had the power and skill to back it up. And Raven would be lying to herself if she didn't admit that he was easy on the eyes.

Then there was Summer. Raven agreed to partner up with Summer in the Emerald Forest only out of necessity. If Summer had not demonstrated the amount of skill she did when they met, Raven wouldn't have even considered it. Since then, Raven continued to be impressed by the girl in the white cloak.

Summer was the first person, besides Qrow, to put Raven in her place. She was courageous, witty, and a tactical genius, despite her quirky personality. As they spent more time together, Raven's respect for Summer continued to grow, and for probably the first time in her life, she had a true friend. She would never admit it to Summer's face, but Raven knew that Summer was going to have a massive impact on her life.

It was their last Saturday in Vale before they were supposed to be sent to Vacuo. Although Raven was usually the one to always want to train, she wanted at least one day of relaxation before leaving. _There'll be plenty of time to rest on the ship,_ Summer echoed in Raven's head as she packed.

"Well guys," Taiyang said, breaking the silence. "I'm gonna make a quick trip into Vale to pick up some parts. Anyone wanna come with?"

"Nah," Qrow answered shortly as he continued packing.

"I'm good," Summer also declined.

"I'll go with," Raven said. "I should pick up some extra Dust for the Tournament, I don't know how much it would cost in Vacuo."

"Alright then, let's go!" Taiyang said as he started toward the door. "See you guys later!" Raven followed the blonde boy out the door, and they duo headed toward the started making their way to the Beacon Docks.

"Are you actually going to Vale to pick up parts?" Raven asked. "Or were you also looking for an excuse to get some fresh air away from Summer?"

"Both," Tai said as he stretched. "As great as Summer is, she's driving the team and herself crazy with all of this training."

"I agree," Raven said. "She thinks tomorrow is our day off. She's clearly never been outside Vale before. Traveling between Kingdoms is exhausting."

"You've been outside Vale?" Taiyang asked.

"Qrow and I moved around a lot before Beacon," Raven explained. "We were born in Mistral, but spent a lot of time in Atlas and Vale as well."

"Why did you guys travel so much?" Tai followed up. Raven hesitated, not sure if she should tell him any more about her past.

 _Is it too early to tell him?_ she asked herself. _Do I need to tell him? I don't know if I even want Summer to know._

"Let's just say that it was for work for now," Raven finally answered.

"Touchy subject? That's cool, I get it," Taiyang said. "If you ever want to talk about it though, I'm your guy."

"I'll keep that in mind," Raven said, appreciating the offer. "So what kind of parts are you looking for?"

"Well, working on Quoth Shadow with you and watching your fighting style gave me some ideas," he answered.

"What? Copying me now?" Raven teased as they boarded the airship.

"Hey, imitation is the best form of flattery," Tai grinned back. "No, I wanted to add some Dust capabilities to Dragon Fist."

"What kind of capabilities?" she asked as they took their seats.

"I want to add a chamber to put Dust Crystals in. That way I can add an elemental edge to my punches. Imagine punching one of our tournament opponents with an electric punch!" Taiyang said excitedly.

"Are two Dust users on the team really necessary?"

"Necessary? No. Totally frickin' awesome? Yes!" he cheered.

"And when are you going to find the time to make that modification?" Raven asked. "I doubt Summer would give you time to use Beacon's workshop when we get back, and I don't think the airship to Vacuo will be an adequate work environment."

"We could probably rent a workbench at the weapons shop," Taiyang reasoned. "I could use an assistant you know."

"It just so happens that I also need to make more coatings for Quoth Shadow before we leave," Raven answered. "I guess I could help, I do still owe you for helping with Quoth Shadow."

"Nah, you don't owe me for that one," he said. "I got upgrade ideas and a friend out of it."

The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping and working on their weapons. They talked about what it would be like in Vacuo, the Tournament, and what kind of opponents to expect. As they talked and worked together, Raven truly began to see Taiyang in a different light. He was a mechanical genius, and Dragon Fist was one of the most intricately designed weapons she had ever seen. Despite his first impression, Raven really found someone she can like and respect in Taiyang, someone who shared an interest with her in weapons. He was much more enthusiastic about them, but it was still common ground.

Raven only had Qrow for most of her life. Finding new friends in Taiyang and Summer has already started to change her perception of people. Summer taught her that Humanity is fragile, and that it's their job to protect it. Taiyang taught her that initial appearance isn't all there is to someone.

With Summer, Taiyang, and Qrow by her side, Raven was happy for the first time in many years. Tomorrow they leave for Vacuo, ready to show the world who Team STRQ is.

* * *

 **I'm so so so sorry this took so long to get out! The last couple of weeks have been busy, but here it is! Loving the continued support that I've been getting from you guys, it's very motivating. As always, remember to follow, fav, and review! See you guys next time!**


	6. Welcome to Shade

Welcome to Shade

* * *

Qrow

"Are we there yet?" Taiyang whined. "I'm bored!"

"No Tai, not yet," Summer said sympathetically as she and Qrow played a game on their scrolls. Raven glared angrily at the holoscreen, Qrow had beaten her so much in their life that she learned to hate the game. Qrow noticed and smirked to himself.

"I don't know why you keep trying, Summer," Raven said. "He can't be beaten."

"She's right," Qrow agreed proudly. "I've never lost a match in this game."

"You can be beaten and I will prove it!" Summer declared. Qrow noticed Taiyang sit up at the sudden excitement. Qrow felt bad for his partner. Taiyang didn't have any hobbies other than working on Dragon Fist and training, not things you can do on a long airship ride.

"Well Summer," Qrow said, leaning back as he won, "loser passes."

"Okay," Summer said, defeated. "Who's next?"

"God no," Raven said. Qrow looked over to Taiyang, who looked bored to the point of depression.

"What about you, Tai?" Qrow asked. "Wanna give it a shot?"

"I dunno," his partner sighed. "Not much of a gamer, you know?"

"Come on, it's fun," Qrow said. "Not like you got anything else to do anyway."

"Alright, why not?" Taiyang said as he walked over and took Summer's scroll from her. "How do I play?"

"This is to move, that's punch, that's kick, and you use the directions to do different moves," Summer explained, pointing out the buttons on the scroll.

"Okay, simple enough," Tai said. "Let's go."

"Fight!" the screen said as the game started. Qrow jumped in with a few combos while Taiyang button-mashed. After a bit of fumbling, Taiyang figured out a few attacks, and started going on the offensive. After a few exchanges of blows, Taiyang ran out of HP, winning Qrow the round.

"Round 2, Fight!" This time Taiyang made the first move, having a better handle on the controls. Qrow was having a hard time reading him and defending.

 _Oh man, I forgot how fast he learns,_ Qrow thought. _I might be in trouble here._

Taiyang kept experimenting, learning combos that Qrow didn't even know existed. With Taiyang's offensive draining Qrow's HP, the round went to Taiyang.

"Round 3, Fight!" Qrow jumped over Taiyang, forcing Taiyang's combos to change directions, hoping to throw Tai off. Taiyang adapted quickly though, throwing in some more combos. The round went blow for blow, both of their HP gradually decreasing. Both fighters jumped, hoping to finish the fight with a jump kick. Taiyang was just a bit faster to the button though.

"Player 2 wins!" the game declared as three jaws hit the floor.

"I.. I lost," Qrow said, completely bewildered that he lost to someone who had never played before.

"I knew it!" Summer cheered.

"He can be beaten," Raven said to herself.

"What's that rule now?" Taiyang said. "Loser passes?"

"That had to have been a fluke!" Raven said, grabbing Qrow's scroll. "Let me try."

Qrow watched as his sister and partner battled in the game. Raven was proved to be wrong though, as Taiyang swept her in only two rounds.

"How'd you get so good so fast?" Qrow asked as Raven sank to the floor in defeat.

"It's easy," Tai explained. "It's like a weapon. Once you learn the mechanics of it, it's easy to master."

"Like a weapon?" Raven said as she sat up. "Summer! Come play me, I need to be able to beat Qrow!"

"On it!" Summer said, snatching her scroll back from Taiyang and sitting next to her partner in front of the screen.

"Raven, my scroll," Qrow said, outstretching his hand. Raven nodded and returned his scroll before pulling her own out and syncing it with Summer's.

"All passengers, this is your captain speaking," the captain's voice said over the loudspeaker. "We are now over the Western half of the continent. If you look out the starboard viewports, you will see that we are currently over the Vacu Desert. We should be arriving in Vacuo in about an hour." Summer paused their game and ran to the window.

"Wow!" she exclaimed as she looked at the desert. "This is incredible!"

"Yeah, it is," Qrow said, joining the leader. Despite spending most of his life travelling with Raven, Qrow had never been to this half of the world. Remnant's Western Hemisphere is a lot more treacherous than the more civil Eastern Hemisphere.

On their side, they have Atlas, Mistral, and Vale, as well as other smaller population centers like Vytal and Menagerie. Over here though, the only major population center is Vacuo. With the Vacu Desert dominating a quarter of the continent, and the Grimm infested continent of Tarra to the north of Vacuo, there's not a lot of places to set up shop.

"First time seeing the desert?" Taiyang asked the three of us.

"Never been to this half of the world," Raven answered.

"The desert looks a lot nicer than it is," Tai continued. "Days are blistering, nights are freezing, and lots of Grimm hiding under the sand."

"How would you know?" Summer asked.

"Master brought me here for survival training," he explained. "Spend a week surviving in the desert. Believe it or not, it wasn't my worst training week."

"What was the worst?" Qrow asked.

"The mountains in Mantle," Tai answered. "At least here we got warm days and plenty of oxygen. Nearly froze to death up there. High altitude plus the lowest temperatures on Remnant is not the best combo."

"I can imagine," Raven said. "I hate the cold."

"Why's that?" Summer said, an evil grin on her face. "Prefer to fly south for the Winter?"

Qrow was always one to appreciate a good joke, especially if it's a clever one at someone else's expense. He doubled over laughing, Taiyang also laughing at the well timed joke. Raven, on the other hand, did not like being the butt of a joke, and only answered Summer with a quick fist to the head. Summer laid on the floor dazed, but wearing a proud grin.

"Raven, don't kill our leader," Qrow said after calming down a bit. "I don't think Beacon will let us graduate without her."

"Excuse me?" Summer said, bolting upright. "I am not just a graduation requirement Qrow! 500 push-ups, right now!"

"What? I thought this was supposed to be our day off from training!" Qrow protested.

"That was before you decided to make a joke out of your leader!" Summer giggled out, punching his arm. "500, that's an order!"

"Fine," Qrow sighed, getting on the floor.

"Nice," Raven said as she fist-bumped her partner.

Qrow would have protested more if it were anyone else giving the order, but for some reason, he had a hard time arguing with Summer. He had thought at first that it was out of respect, she was the leader of the team and had proven that she deserved it. But as he thought about it more, he couldn't help but feel like there was more to it than that.

"...500," Qrow said as he finished his last push-up. He looked around for his team, who had returned to the holoscreen. Summer and Raven had resumed their game, while Taiyang observed.

"You sure it was 500?" Summer asked. "That seemed fast."

"How would you know?" Qrow shot back. "You three weren't even watching!"

"Why would we watch you do push-ups?" Raven replied.

"Yeah, there are much better things to look at," Taiyang agreed.

"I'm trusting you Qrow, it was 500?" Summer asked again.

"Yes, Boss," Qrow said, sitting next to Taiyang.

"Boss?" Summer said to herself. "I kinda like the sound of that."

"Don't think about it too much," Raven said. "Last thing we need is a third big-headed idiot."

"Big-headed might be taking it a bit far," Taiyang said.

"Really? That's what you take issue with?" Summer asked.

"Honestly, idiot is a complement from Raven," Taiyang joked.

"He's not wrong," Qrow agreed.

"Did you guys know that an imbecile is actually smarter than an idiot?" Taiyang asked.

"Really? Imbecile sounds so much harsher," Summer said.

"Yeah, and a moron is smarter than an imbecile," Tai added.

"Well look at that, we have the trifecta," Raven teased. "Qrow's the idiot, Tai's the imbecile, and Summer's the moron."

That earned a laugh from the rest of the team, a rare feat from Raven. Qrow had noticed that Raven seemed a lot relaxed lately. When they came to Beacon, Qrow planned on being on a separate team from her. He wanted her to be around strangers, be forced to make friends and realize what her goal had turned her into. Even though they still ended up together, Sumner and Taiyang seemed to be the perfect teammates for her.

Summer was her complete opposite, and her foil. Summer was cheerful and pleasant, and didn't have an evil or greedy bone in her body. Some of that seemed to start rubbing off on Raven, who used to be power-hungry and remorseless. If anyone was needed to keep Raven in line, it was Summer.

Then there was Taiyang. He and Raven had strangely hit it off after initiation, despite first impressions. Taiyang was teaching Raven how to be social, the two of them heading into Vale often. Qrow wondered exactly what the relationship was between his sister and his partner, but they seemed close.

"All passengers, if you'd please make your way to the starboard boarding ramp, we will be arriving at Shade Academy shortly," the captain announced over the loudspeaker.

"It's been an hour already?" Summer said. "That was quick."

"Time flies when you get repeatedly stomped," Raven gloated, flaunting her victories over her partner.

"Stupid game anyway," Summer muttered, crossing her arms.

"Hey, welcome to my childhood," Raven said with a very small amount of sympathy in her voice as she glared at me.

"Get good," Qrow teased.

"You should too, you lost to a first-timer," Raven teased.

"You did too," Qrow argued. That shut Raven up, and she dropped the conversation.

The four of them made their way to the boarding ramps with the rest of the Beacon students. After a few minutes, a locking sound was heard, and the door opened to Shade's airship docks. The first thing the team noticed was the blast of heat that came from outside.

"Oh man, it's hot," Summer whined as they stepped outside.

"I'm way too overdressed," Qrow said, starting to sweat.

"Light colored and baggy clothes are your friends out here," Taiyang said, seeming comfortable. Qrow looked at his own clothes and at the girls. Summer's corset and combat skirt were all black, and Raven's gi was mostly black. Qrow's clothes were lighter colored, but had several close-fitting layers.

"Come on you two, it's not that bad," Raven said.

"How are you not dying? You're wearing black!" Summer exclaimed.

"Loose-fitting gi," she answered, pulling on her top a bit. "I came prepared for this."

"How could you have known?" Qrow asked.

"Taiyang told me," she said.

"And you didn't tell us?" Summer shouted.

"I'm sorry! I told her while we were shopping and I guess telling you guys slipped my mind," Tai admitted.

"Thanks Tai, now Qrow and I need to go shopping in Vacuo before we start getting missions," Summer huffed and continued into the academy. Once inside, she and Qrow let out a sigh of relief.

"Beacon has made me take air conditioning for granted," Qrow said.

"So much nicer in here," Summer agreed.

"Welcome, students from Beacon Academy, to Vacuo's own Shade Academy!" said a man in the entryway. Qrow reasoned that he was a professor. "Visitors dormitories are in the West Wing, if you would please follow me, I shall escort you!"

"Well he seems cheery," Summer said.

"Now hold on a sec," Qrow said quietly. "How come when I make a joke, I get a physical punishment, but when Tai screws up, he just gets an annoyed look."

"Is that bugging you?" Summer asked smugly.

"A little, yeah," Qrow said defensively.

"Don't take it personally, you got punished for purely selfish reasons," Summer said.

"The hell does that mean?" Qrow said, getting annoyed with the non-answers.

"Let's just say I like looking at pretty things," Summer teased with a wink.

 _Is she flirting with me?_ Qrow thought to himself. Now that he thought about it, Summer always did seem to pay just a bit more attention to him, and with Raven and Taiyang in the forges a lot, the two of them had a lot of time to talk. Summer couldn't be a-

"Team STRQ, this shall be your room," the professor said, interrupting Qrow's thoughts. "Please hold your scrolls near the terminal to obtain the code for the lock." The four of them did so. "Great! You four have my class first thing tomorrow, so I'll see you then!" The team entered their temporary dorm as the Professor walked away with the other students to their rooms.

"Well this is… nice," Tai said as they observed the room. It was arranged similarly to Beacon's default arrangement, although with less bookshelves and the beds more spread out, with the walls painted a light orange.

"No, it's tacky," Raven said.

"It's not that bad," Summer reassured. "We're just used to our room at Beacon. I'm sure we'll get used to this one!"

"Let's see about that," Qrow said as he laid down on one of the beds. "Nope, Beacon's beds are better. This is going to suck."

"Oh come on guys, how about a little optimism?" Summer pleaded. "Think about it, we only have to deal with this for two months... Okay yeah it sounds worse out loud."

"Why don't we look at the milestones then?" Tai suggested. "When's the Vytal Festival Dance?"

"Two weeks," Summer said.

"See? That's not so bad!" Taiyang said. "The day after that, we have our first mission, which is a few more days away from Shade."

"I'd much rather be working than cooped up here," Raven agreed.

"Exactly!" Taiyang said. "We have a month of missions and classes, and then the Tournament starts, and that's the whole reason we're here!"

"Taiyang's right!" Summer cheered. "We just gotta put things in perspective! Don't worry team, we'll win that Tournament and be back to Beacon in no time!"

* * *

Summer

"So, do we really need to wear our Beacon uniforms here?" Summer asked her team as she looked at Shade's students. "There doesn't exactly seem to be a dress code here." The students were all wearing casual clothes and combat gear.

"Maybe the school doesn't have a uniform due to the heat," Raven reasoned. "They'd rather have the students wear what they want instead of making them roast in regulated clothing."

"Makes sense to me," Qrow said as they entered the classroom. Summer looked at the class and noticed that some of the other students were wearing their uniforms as well. There were a few other Beacon students, and she saw Haven's black uniform and Atlas's military uniform amongst the class as well.

"Alright everyone, please take your seats," the professor from the previous day said as he entered the room. "And I must say again, students from Beacon, Atlas, and Haven, welcome to Shade academy! I am Professor Vender, and welcome to Grimm Studies!

"Now class, to get started, who can tell me the most effective way to dispatch a Deathstalker?" he asked the class. Raven rose her hand. "Yes, Miss… Branwen?"

"That's right," Raven confirmed the pronunciation of her name. "The most effective way to defeat a fully grown Deathstalker is to pierce it's armor with it's own stinger, and then exploit the wound."

"Very good, Miss Branwen, I see Professor Port has been teaching you students well," Vender complemented.

"That's a word for it," Qrow whispered to Summer, who had to cover her mouth to stifle a giggle.

"Now," Vender continued, "why is this strategy not recommended for newer Hunters, despite it's effectiveness?" He picked a Shade student. "Yes?"

"Because the strategy involves baiting the Deathstalker into impaling itself with it's stinger, and the Deathstalker's offensive capabilities make it very difficult to put it into that position," the student answered.

"Precisely!" Vender said. "Who can tell me an alternate technique for defeating a Deathstalker?" Summer looked around the room, and noticed that Chandler was in this class as well. Professor Vender must have noticed as well. "Mr… Winchester? Do you know the answer?"

"Well, you could try assaulting it to break through it's armor," Chandler answered. Most of the class laughed at his answer.

"Let me know how that goes for you, Mr. Winchester," Vender joked.

"I'm serious! It worked for Team STRQ! If those guys could do it, anyone could," Chandler said, throwing Team STRQ under the bus. Vender looked at the team with an impressed look on his face.

"Do we have to tell the story again?" Summer asked.

"I'm sure we'd all like to hear it," Vender said.

"Well first off, it was a Goliath, not a Deathstalker," Taiyang said. The students from the other schools started muttering to each other.

"And we didn't break through it's armor, we decapitated it," Raven finished. The class started muttering again.

"This could be bad," Qrow whispered to Summer.

"Right," Summer agreed. "They might start keeping an eye on us for the Tournament."

"We'll have to keep our heads down while we're here, don't want any more attention drawn to us if we want to keep the Tournament even. If they're constantly observing us, they could get an advantage," Qrow continued.

"Chandler did this on purpose," Summer concluded. "He wants us to be the center of attention."

"Again, we just gotta keep quiet," Qrow said.

"Well, Team STRQ," Vender said. "That is very impressive. I imagine your performance in the Tournament will be something to look out for."

"Dammit, even the teachers," Summer whispered.

"We're screwed," Qrow agreed.

Summer looked around the classroom, and noticed students talking with their teams and looking at them. Summer's Semblance was to turn invisible, she could hide in plain sight. She really wished she could've turned invisible in that moment, at least to hide the target that was just painted across Team STRQ's back.

* * *

 **I am so sorry that this took so long to get out, but life gets in the way, you know? As always, thank you all so much for reading and being patient with me, and remember to follow, fav, and review! I'll try my damnedest to be faster with the next one!**


	7. Distractions

Distractions

* * *

Raven

"Summer, why are we wasting our time with this?" Raven asked her partner. Summer had somehow managed to drag her into Vacuo, to go dress shopping.

"Don't you want to look nice for the dance?" Summer asked.

"No, because I'm not going," Raven answered.

"Like hell you're not!" Summer commanded. "Team STRQ should make an appearance, we are competing after all."

"Exactly, we're competing," Raven explained. "Why would I waste time at a stupid dance with the competition when we could be coming up with strategies or training?"

"Because it's supposed to be fun," Summer replied. "It's healthy to cut loose every now and then you know."

"Summer Rose, the girl who worked us half to death for a month for this tournament is telling us to cut loose just two weeks beforehand?" Raven snarked. "Are you the same Summer that I partnered with?"

"Okay look," Summer said harshly, pulling Raven to the side of the sidewalk. "We can't risk doing that much training while we're on campus. Remember, there's a bulls-eye on all of our heads because Winchester drew attention to us. Surely you've seen the other students keeping an eye on us."

"Of course I have, I'm not blind," Raven responded.

"Then what are we supposed to do? Stay cooped up in our room during the dance?" Summer asked. "Like I said, it's healthy. Besides, we'll want to have a little fun before our first mission on Monday."

"Fine," Raven huffed. "Let's go get some stupid dresses."

"That's better!" Summer cheered. "I should probably buy some lighter clothes too, actually. I'm sick of sweating bullets every time I walk outside. Which wouldn't be a problem if _some_ people would've warned us beforehand."

"You should've asked," Raven said. She followed Summer down the streets of Vacuo, the pair peeking into the windows of shops, before Summer found a dress she liked in the window of a tiny shop.

"Raven, that one looks gorgeous!" she cheered before heading into the store. The store clerk noticed the two girls, notably Summer.

"Oh you poor thing, isn't that outfit a bit heavy?" she asked, regarding Summer's corset and cloak.

"A little, yeah," Summer answered. "I'm actually in the market for something lighter while we're in the Kingdom."

"Well, judging by your outfits and the tall one's sword, you two are Huntresses, right?" the clerk asked.

"Well, in training," Summer answered.

"Splendid!" the clerk said excitedly. "I've always wanted to design a combat outfit for a Huntress!"

"Oh, well I appreciate the offer," Summer giggled. "But the real reason I came in here was for that dress you have in the window."

"Hmm, tell you what," the clerk said. "Let me design an outfit for you, and you can have it, and the dress, for 75% of the price of the dress."

"So I'd get the outfit for free, and the dress at a discount?" Summer asked, to which the clerk nodded.

"There you go Summer, two birds with an even cheaper stone," Raven said.

"Can't argue with that," Summer agreed. "You've got a deal!"

"Wonderful!" the clerk cheered, before turning her attention to Raven. "And what about you, dear?"

"I guess I'm also looking for a dress," Raven answered, wanting to get it done as soon as possible. "Also, it's Raven, not 'dear.'"

"Raven, be polite," Summer scolded.

"Oh I don't mind!" the clerk said. "Knowing someone's personality and style makes it that much easier to find the perfect clothing for them." The clerk looked Raven up and down, like she was analyzing her. "Do you typically wear a black gi?"

"Um, yes, I do," Raven answered, slightly surprised by the question. The clerk thought a bit more.

"Hold on a second," she said before going through a door at the back of the shop. A few moments later, she emerged with an ornate black dress. "Try this on."

Raven stepped into the changing room and stripped, before trying on the dress. The black fabric went from her shoulders down to her feet, with one sleeve covering her right shoulder and arm, leaving her left side bare. There were ornate designs all along the breast area. The dress was light, despite being long, and was surprisingly easy to move in. Raven turned and looked at herself in the mirror. She almost didn't recognize the woman in the reflection.

Her entire life, she had moved around with Qrow, constantly training and surviving. It's always been combat gear and clothing. She never had the opportunity to wear a dress before. She never cared how she looked, just that she was alive. Looking good doesn't keep you alive. However, as she stared at the mirror, she couldn't help but smile and feel a little warm inside. She never thought to look at the finer details of herself. Even though she didn't do anything special to present herself every day, wearing this dress, the reflection she stared at looked beautiful. Even with slightly unkempt hair and minimal makeup. For the first time, Raven felt some pride in her appearance.

"You okay in there, Raven?" she heard Summer ask through the door. "Hurry up, I want to see!"

"Yeah, I'm coming," Raven said, stepping through the door.

"Oh my god, Raven! You look amazing in that dress!" Summer commented, fueling Raven's newfound pride further. Raven noticed that Summer had changed into the dress she saw in the window as well. The red, strapless dress flared out around Summer's knees, and covered her just over her breasts. A thin black belt ran across Summer's waist, adding some personality to the plain red dress.

"You look good, too," Raven returned the compliment.

"I'm going to assume that you're just being you and actually mean better than good, because I look bomb!" Summer said excitedly, her ego a bit more inflated than usual.

"Summer's right though, this dress does suit you perfectly," the clerk said. "Your typical attire is of Mistralian origin, so I thought that a dress made of Mistralian fabric and design would work. Turns out I was right."

"I agree," Raven said, admiring herself again. "How much?"

"That particular dress comes to about 350 lien," the clerk said.

"350!?" Raven exclaimed. "That's insane! Who would pay that much for a mass of fabric?"

"Most girls," Summer answered. "Dresses are expensive. This one was 300 lien before the discount." Raven stared at Summer's simple dress, awed by the original price tag. "For a dress like yours, 350 is honestly a steal."

"Seriously?" Raven asked again, to which Summer nodded. "I guess I'll take it then."

"Perfect! Go and change back into your gi, bring the dress to the counter, and I'll ring you up!" the clerk said happily. "Summer, was it? You go and change too, but come into the back when I'm done with Raven. I want your input for your new combat outfit."

"What about me?" Raven asked Summer. "What am I supposed to do while you're helping design?"

"Want to scout out some places to eat?" Summer suggested. "I'm starving."

* * *

"Well today has been productive!" Summer said happily as she ate her lunch. "We both got dresses for the dance, and I got a new outfit for Vacuo!"

Raven looked over her partner's new attire. Apparently Summer insisted on keeping the cloak, for whatever reason. Underneath though, she wore a black, sleeveless, loose-fitting shirt and a matching light combat skirt. She ditched her usual black stockings and combat boots for bare legs and calf-high leather boots. Raven had to admit, Summer knew how to keep an aesthetic through different outfits.

"Yeah, and I'm 350 lien in the hole," Raven said, a slightly annoyed tone in her voice.

"Raven, your dress is gorgeous," Summer said, trying to lighten her partner up. "Like I said, it was a steal."

"Easy for you to say, you got a dress and a new combat outfit for a grand total of 225," Raven argued.

"I got lucky." Summer shrugged. "How about this? I got your lunch, since you already spent so much today."

"Fine," Raven said, experience telling her to never turn down a free meal.

"You know, I've noticed something," Summer said, Raven giving her a curious look between bites. "You've come a long way since the day we met."

"What do you mean?" Raven asked.

"You're not nearly as cold as you used to be," Summer explained. "Especially toward Taiyang."

"What does that mean? I treat you all the exact same," Raven argued.

"Exactly! You and Taiyang had a less-than-friendly first meeting, and now he's your friend," Summer said.

"Either I became his friend, or sharing a room with him was going to be a rough time for four years," Raven put simply.

"True, but you two also spend a lot of time together," Summer prodded.

"We have similar interests," Raven answered, starting to see where her partner was going with this. Before she could act on it, she noticed two people walk into the restaurant, with bandanas over their faces. Raven looked to her partner, and noticed the red-haired girl also looking at the two men.

"People don't walk into restaurants covering their faces," Summer muttered. Raven looked around, and noticed that the other patrons were oblivious to the two blatant criminals. "We should stop them."

"Summer, we have to keep a low profile," Raven reminded. "If we do something, we're going to draw attention back at Shade. I want to help too, but this is a bad move." Summer looked at the table in defeat. But after a moment, Raven noticed a glint in Summers eye, coupled with a sly smile. Summer had a plan.

"Leave," she commanded. "Quickly. I'll meet you down the block."

"Are you kidding?" Raven said. "I have to see what you have planned."

"Fine, then wait outside," Summer said as she laid a generous amount of lien on the table to cover the bill, since they'd be leaving unannounced. She got up and headed toward the restroom, Raven also standing up to leave the restaurant. Raven stepped outside, and looked in through the window.

The two men drew guns from their jackets, one of them holding up the person behind the counter, the other one keeping the patrons in check. Raven couldn't hear what they were saying, but considering the circumstances, she was able to guess. Suddenly, the man controlling the crowd dropped his gun, no, it was knocked out of his hand, but what did it could not be seen. The man then doubled over, before collapsing onto the floor unconscious. The other gunman was frantically looking around the restaurant, trying to spot his partner's attacker. His arm then twisted around his back, causing him to drop his weapon as well. He dropped to a knee in pain, and then his head was forcefully knocked upward, knocking him on his back, knocked out and bleeding from the nose.

Raven smiled at the scene, the thugs getting what they deserved. A few moments later, Summer emerged from the alleyway next to the building.

"Common thugs, piece of cake," Summer said triumphantly. "We should go, the police will be here soon. Last thing I want is to get interviewed and end up in the news." The two started making their way toward Shade, before Summer spoke up again. "This is what I was talking about before, by the way."

"What is?" Raven asked, confused by the sudden turn in the conversation.

"You said you wanted to help before," Summer explained. "The Raven I met in the forest would've ignored the whole ordeal entirely."

"I think we've had this conversation already," Raven said. "Being a Huntress means protecting people. It's our job."

"I know, just proving my point," Summer said with a large grin.

* * *

Raven sighed as she took another cup of fruit punch. She turned around and looked at the Shade ballroom, heavily populated by dancing and socializing students, from Shade and otherwise. Raven wasn't a talker. She didn't like small talk, she didn't like getting to know people. She was a warrior, not a partygoer. And yet here she was, surrounded by dancing students, wearing the dress she got from a little shop downtown, sipping on fruit punch. Bored out her mind. Much to her relief, Taiyang came to the punch table. Thankful for someone she could actually talk to, she greeted him.

"Hey," she said.

"Raven Branwen, hiding by the punchbowl," he joked. "Seems out of character for you."

"The fact that I'm here at all is out of character for me," Raven huffed. "Only reason I came was because Summer convinced me to buy this stupid dress, and I wasn't going to let it be a waste of money."

"I think you look great," Taiyang said before sipping his punch. Taiyang was the first person to comment on her look. In addition to the dress, Summer helped Raven do her hair and makeup. Her lips were redder, her eyes were darker, and her skin was whiter than it had ever been in her whole life. Her black hair waved down her back, softer and fuller than it had been in a long. Raven certainly felt beautiful, but it never really occurred to her how other people would see her.

"Thanks," she told her teammate. She felt strange. Uneasy. She didn't feel like she was in danger, yet when Taiyang spoke she felt a tightness in her chest as if she was. Her face felt hot, and was more than likely tinted red beneath the makeup.

"Looks like those two are having fun," Taiyang said, indicating their teammates on the dance floor. Raven looked, grateful for the subject change. Summer and Qrow danced together, huge smiles plastered on their faces. Raven particularly noted Qrow's. She hadn't seen him smile like that since they were kids. He seems so much happier around Summer. Finally, a question came to Raven's mind, regarding their fourth teammate.

"Why aren't you dancing?" she asked Taiyang.

"I felt like a third wheel with those two," he answered. "No one likes being a third wheel." Raven nodded in agreement. "It'd be better with our fourth wheel though."

Raven looked up at him, curious as to what he meant. Then the song ended, being replaced by a slower one. Everyone started to partner up, Summer and Qrow included. This who could not find partners moved off to the side, talking and laughing and drinking punch.

"Want to dance?" Taiyang asked Raven. She shot him a surprised look.

"No thanks," Raven answered. She nervously sipped her punch. Why was she nervous? "Besides, I don't know how."

"Come on, it's not that hard," Taiyang pleaded. "You gotta cut loose, Raven. You're always so wound up. Just relax and have a little fun before we have to go back to work tomorrow." After a moment of internal arguing, Raven finally nodded, following her teammate out onto the dance floor.

"All you need is a sense of rhythm," Taiyang said. "It's really not that different from fighting, and you're a natural at that. Now, we'll hold hands out here, and you put this hand on my shoulder." Raven complied, not used to being this close to an ally. Taiyang rested his hand on Raven's waist, making her feel a little uneasy at first, until she noticed the other dancers in the same position. "Perfect! Now, just follow my lead."

The pair started moving to the beat of the music. Raven realized that Taiyang was right, it really isn't that different from fighting. He acted, and she reacted. Raven got lost. Lost in the music, the movement, lost in Taiyang's sharp blue eyes that looked down into her own crimson. The tournament didn't matter anymore, the next day's mission mattered even less. All that mattered was that Raven was lost, lost and relaxed in the moment. No future to worry about, no ghosts to chase her down. Just her, in this moment, in Taiyang's arms. She didn't even notice Qrow and Summer shooting them glances.

"You really are beautiful you know," Taiyang said, snapping Raven back to reality.

"Summer went a tad overboard on the makeup," Raven said.

"I don't just mean now, I mean in general," Taiyang clarified. The uneasy tightness and hot face came back, and Raven could feel her heart pounding. What was wrong with her? Why was Taiyang having this effect on her? Luckily, the song ended a moment later. Raven let go of Taiyang.

"I'm sorry, I need some fresh air," Raven said, hurrying toward the door to the veranda. She stepped outside, gasping, trying to regain control of her senses. Was it the punch? No, this wasn't poison of any kind. She leaned on the railing, taking slow, deep breaths to slow her heart rate. She felt weakened, shaken, something she hadn't felt since-

"Raven! Are you okay?" Taiyang said from behind her.

"Why did you follow me?" Raven asked evenly, hiding her strained face.

"The fact that you said 'I'm sorry' and walked away," he explained. "Normally you wouldn't say a word."

"You know me too well," Raven said, trying to stay monotonous.

"That's a lie," Taiyang said, leaning on the railing next to her. "You never tell me anything about you." Raven turned her head away from him. "What's this about? What's with the sudden hatred for me?"

"I don't hate you," Raven said, her tone on the verge of cracking. "Not even close."

"Then what's up?" he asked again, real concern in his voice. Raven let out a deep sigh.

"No one talks to me like that," Raven put simply. "No one talks about my looks, or my feelings, or my interests. It's all about how good I am and what I can do with my skills. That's how it's been my whole life. I never went dress shopping. I never learned to dance. No one ever told me I was beautiful. It was always training, and surviving."

"That's crazy," Taiyang said. "Someone had to have commented. What kind of life is that?"

"The life of a mercenary," Raven answered, deciding to go all in with him. "Tai, we're guns for hire. That's how we lived, since we were old enough to fight. Old enough to kill. Qrow and I killed our first target when we were seven. Since then, it's always been how good I am at what I do. No one cared how I looked. As long as I got the job done. The life of a dirty sellsword."

"You are not a dirty sellsword!" Taiyang said as he grabbed her shoulders, turning her to face him. "You are so much more than that. You are a strong, beautiful, and brilliant Huntress. You're a great friend to Summer and me. And honestly, you're the best damn teammate anyone could ever want."

The feelings inside Raven's chest and head returned, stronger than ever. She finally deduced that it wasn't nervousness, it was a struggle against an urge. Raven was fighting her instincts, as she didn't know what they were telling her to do. Finally, she lost, and instinct took over. Her body moved itself forward, pushing her lips onto Taiyang's, finally doing what her body had wanted to this entire time. Taiyang, though shocked for a moment, reciprocated, returning the kiss. After a few more moments, Raven pulled away, looks of shock and disbelief burning brightly on their faces. Still wearing her shocked expression, and not being able to process what had just happened, Raven turned and left the dance.

* * *

 **So much angst. I'm just glad I was able to get a good Raven chapter out, she's very hard to write for. Thank you guys for reading, remember to send some feedback my way! See you all next time!**


	8. Separation

Separation

* * *

Taiyang

The next morning was… quiet. Raven hadn't said a word to Taiyang, or even made eye contact. Summer and Qrow noticed the tension, and wisely avoiding breaking the silence. They were quiet when they woke up, they were quiet when they put their gear on. They quietly listened to Shade's Headmaster give a speech about the duties of Hunters, and how they are in charge of keeping the peace after the Great War. Summer picked their mission after a silent discussion with Raven and Qrow, and the team boarded the Bullhead. The entire morning, not a word.

"Morning, Team STRQ!" Professor Vender said as he stepped onto the dropship, finally breaking the silence that loomed over the team. He signalled for the pilot to take off.

"Morning, Professor!" Summer greeted, clearly grateful to finally be able to speak.

"You all nervous?" Vender asked. The four of them shook their heads. Personal issues aside, they were all still confident and ready for their first mission. "You shouldn't anyway. You're just shadowing me as I do a patrol of the desert. You all seem dressed appropriately. I hope you all brought plenty of water."

"Got it," Qrow said, holding up a flask of water. Qrow never had time to get a new outfit in Vacuo, so he wore his normal attire, albeit with the shirt partially unbuttoned and the sleeves rolled up.

 _Honestly, that's a better look for him,_ Taiyang thought.

Summer wore the outfit she got in Vacuo, complete with the sleeveless shirt, light combat skirt, boots, and her signature white hood. Silent Thorn sat in it's usual resting place, sheathed in it's dual holsters across her lower back.

Raven and Taiyang also wore their normal attire, their outfits already more suited to the climate. Raven was looking everywhere Taiyang wasn't, and Taiyang hated it. He couldn't get a read on her. He couldn't tell if she was angry, embarrassed, ashamed, or what. All he knew was that she kissed him the previous night, and things were not okay.

"Well students, here's the rundown," Vender said. "There are several security network outposts in the Vacu desert that alert us if any major threats come near the kingdom. We are just doing routine checks on them for the next few days, seeing if they've been tampered with or damaged in any way. There shouldn't be much Grimm activity during the day, and we will be staying at the security outposts at night, so this is a perfect shadow job for first-years like yourselves. Although, if the stories about you four are true, I don't think we'll have any problems." He smiled confidently.

The four of them remained silent. If it was someone from Beacon, they may have responded, but Summer still wanted them to keep their mouths shut. Taiyang never quite understood why, Vender seemed friendly enough, and he seemed like he would enjoy the story from Initiation. But they were Summer's orders, and Taiyang followed them.

"Well, we should reach the first outpost in about 15 minutes now," Vender continued. "After that it'll be about a two hour walk between outposts."

"Wait, if the Bullhead is dropping us off at the first one, why don't they fly us to each outpost?" Summer asked.

"Dust is expensive, Summer," Raven answered, speaking for the first time that day. "Why would they waste it if they don't have to?"

 _Oh sure,_ Taiyang thought, _Summer she can talk to._

"Precisely!" Vender said. "Besides, a two hour walk isn't that bad."

 _Liar,_ Taiyang thought again, knowing exactly what walking in the desert is like. _That's two hours of hell between stops._ He threw a sympathetic look at his partner, knowing that he would be suffering the most out of all of them.

The 15 minutes passed quickly, with Summer and Qrow chatting with Vender. Raven, despite finally speaking, still stayed quiet and avoided Taiyang's eyes. The Bullhead started to lower, and the team could see the first outpost.

Vale's security devices were kept out in the open, scattered through the Emerald forest. With the moderate climate on that side of the continent, there was no need for extra shelter or protection when doing maintenance.

Vacuo's security outposts were different. There was a small building before them, with several windows on each side. Due to the harsh conditions of the desert, the security stations needed to be placed in buildings for the protection of anyone doing maintenance or inspections. Taiyang reasoned that Atlas did something similar, knowing how rough a Mantle Winter can be.

"Oh man, it's even hotter than I thought it'd be," Qrow said as he stepped off the drop ship. He immediately took out his canteen and took a gulp.

"Might want to save that Qrow," Taiyang warned. "It's gotta last during our walks in the desert."

"You shouldn't drink too much anyway," Vender interjected. "Water poisoning is just as dangerous as dehydration. That said, you will be able to refill your canteens at each outpost."

"Good to know," Qrow said. The five Hunters entered the building, Vender leading the to a large machine in the middle of the room.

"Alright students," Vender said. "Here is the security beacon. We'll be inspecting one at each outpost." He opened a panel in the side of the machine. "On the inside of the door here is a diagram of how all the readouts should appear. This one checks out, so we're done here," he said as he closed the panel. "If we do come across one that has problems, all we have to do is plug a scroll into it and wait for the diagnostic to run. Then we fix the problem! Now, I want you all to grab any supplies you need while we're here, since we won't reach the next outpost for about two hours."

The team went to grab food and water, and to relieve themselves, not wanting to have to do it in the desert. Once ready, the five began their trek to the next outpost, Vender guiding them with a live map toward their destination. And so went the rest of the day, the team walking through the desert to each outpost, checking the beacons in each one and repairing the ones that needed it. Taiyang was relieved when they came across mechanical problems, it finally gave him something to do. With the handiwork and plenty of time between stops to think, Taiyang felt his bitterness toward Raven subside.

There wasn't any real reason for him to be upset with her, she hadn't really done anything to him. But Taiyang came from a background where he was constantly communicating with his family and master, letting them help him with his troubles, and helping them with theirs. Raven's attitude was a new experience for him, the silent treatment rubbing him in every wrong way. They were teammates, and they needed to talk, something Raven was obviously not willing to do. Qrow and Summer definitely noticed, as they both shared concerned looks with Tai and Raven from time to time. As much as he didn't want to involve them, he was grateful that they were at least acknowledging the problem.

"Just another half an hour students," Vender said, oblivious to the tension within the team. "It'll be dark soon, so we'll spend the night at the next outpost."

It had been a long day, and Taiyang was excited to finally be able to take a break. To his own surprise, he found that he enjoyed his survival training more. When he was last in the Vacu desert, he moved when necessary, and was constantly focused, his mind always on the task at hand. This time, he was being guided and made to walk between mundane maintenance jobs. It was too relaxing, and boring. He was so off-guard, that he didn't feel the rumbling beneath him right away.

"Guys, do you feel that too?" he asked as he finally noticed the sensation.

"Yeah. Professor, what's going on?" Summer asked.

"No, it can't be," Vender said to himself. But as the shaking intensified, his eyes widened in horror. "Run!"

A massive tail broke through the sand, flailing wildly. The five Hunters all moved away, and the rest of the creature emerged from it's hiding place beneath the sand. It was a Deathstalker, but not one like any Taiyang had seen before. This one was the size of two Downtown Vale city blocks, and had a tail that doubled the monstrosity's length. Pincers the size of single-story houses, and eight glowing red eyes the size of a child. It was the largest Grimm that Taiyang had ever seen, the Goliath from initiation looking like a chihuahua by comparison.

Team STRQ readied their weapons, and Taiyang could see the face that Summer made when formulating a plan. The monster wouldn't wait, and lashed forward with it's stinger-tipped tail. The five dodged in different directions, with Taiyang and Raven dodging to the left, while the others dodged right. The Deathstalker, smart enough to recognize a potential flank, swung with it's right pincer toward Taiyang and Raven. Tai knew they couldn't dodge, and did the first thing that came to mind. He threw himself in front of Raven, willing to take the full force of the blow do she didn't have to.

No amount of Aura on Remnant could fully protect someone from getting hit by the equivalent of a building being swung at 100 kilometers per hour. Taiyang took the hit, his Aura briefly flashing before shattering, and then, darkness.

* * *

Summer

"Raven! Tai!" Summer and Qrow exclaimed simultaneously. They watched as the giant Deathstalker swung with it's pincer, sending the two teammates flying out of view. Summer looked back at the monster and grit her teeth in anger. Nothing hurt her team like that. She drew Silent Thorn in it's dual-pistol mode and opened fire on the monster's eyes. It shielded it's face with it's claws, and jabbed it's tail downward once again. Vender intervened, smashing the stinger with a large warhammer. Summer had no idea where the weapon came from, but was grateful that Vender had it now.

"I said run!" he commanded once more. Summer and Qrow complied this time, running in the direction the were walking before. Vender leapt up and readied his hammer, then brought it down on top of the monster's head. Certainly not enough to break through the Deathstalker's armor, but it did leave the creature in a daze, and that's all Vender needed. He put his weapon away and ran to catch up with Summer and Qrow. The three never stopped running until they reached the outpost.

"What the hell was that thing?" Qrow said angrily. "I didn't think Deathstalkers could get that big!"

"They typically can't," Vender said, sitting down. "That wasn't a typical Deathstalker though, that was Scorpio."

"Scorpio?" Summer asked. "Since when do Grimm have individual names?"

"They don't, but Legendary Grimm do," Vender explained. "Scorpio has been alive for at least a millennium, and has terrorized the Vacu desert that entire time, though it's attacks are few and far between."

"Are there other legendary Grimm?" Qrow asked.

"Have you ever heard the Legend of Verid?" Vender asked.

"I have," Summer said. "Verid was an ancient Huntsman that defeated the dragon Tarra, and then was given a continent for his heroics, which he named after the dragon due to it's shape."

"Oh yeah, now I remember," Qrow chimed in. "The story says that Verid sealed Tarra in a mountain somewhere near Vale, where it could never again break free, only to die with time. Isn't that just a bedtime story though?"

"Well, all legends have at least a small amount of history in them," Vender said. "Verid was real, and Tarra was a Legendary Grimm, the last Grimm Dragon."

"So Scorpio is in the same vein as Tarra?" Summer asked.

"Precisely," Vender said. "We need to be more careful tomorrow."

"No, we need to find Tai and Raven before anything else," Qrow said, bringing Vender back to the situation and barely masking his anger. "Summer, you can track their scroll right?"

"Right," she confirmed, pulling out her scroll and checking. But when she saw only one other blip on the screen, her heart sank. "Their scrolls aren't transmitting."

"What?" Qrow asked, anger rising. "How?"

"Maybe they broke," Vender reasoned. "You two stay here, I'll go look for them."

"No way, I'm coming with you!" Qrow said.

"Absolutely not," Vender commanded. "I need you two to turn on the signal light on top of the outpost, and keep it on so I can find my way back. You can't come along because I can't put you two in more danger than you're in. You'll be a better help to me here." He turned and walked out the door. Qrow stared after him for a while, before slowly climbing to the roof of the building. Summer followed him, concerned for her friend.

"You okay?" she asked him.

"I'll be okay when I know that Tai and Raven are okay," he answered.

"They will be, Tai's tough and Raven's smart," Summer reassured. "Vender will find them and everything will be fine."

"I hope you're right," Qrow said.

* * *

Raven

Raven's eyes opened slowly. The sun was setting, and her head felt like an axe was buried in it. She strained to sit up and tried to remember what had happened. There was the Deathstalker, it attacked them, and then Taiyang-

"Oh god, Taiyang!" she cried as she bolted up, looking around frantically for her teammate. "Taiyang! Can you hear me!?" Her heart pounded, the fear of losing Taiyang growing by the second. She used her Semblance and flew up into the air, getting a literal bird's-eye view of the desert. She scanned the desert, before noticing an irregularity in the sand. She darted toward it, and as she got closer, she could make out a tan vest and blonde hair.

"Taiyang!" she called as she reverted to her human form and ran toward him. She knelt down and scooped him up. He had a large gash over his right eye, and he wasn't waking up. "Taiyang, you have to wake up! Taiyang please! Please wake up!" She felt tears well up in her eyes. She'd ignored him all day, tried to distance herself, tried to fight her feelings. And now, someone she cared about, one of the first since she was a child, was possibly dead in her arms, because he tried to save her. "Don't leave me, please."

She heard a groan come from Taiyang's throat. Shocked, she looked at Taiyang's face. His face hardened for a moment, before his eyes opened.

"T-Taiyang?" Raven asked, shaking in anticipation.

"Oh hey," Taiyang said as he registered Raven. "You're talking to me."

"You bastard!" Raven cried as she pulled him into a tight hug. "You scared the hell out of me!"

"If this is the response I get, I'll get knocked out more often," Taiyang joked.

"Shut up!" Raven said between sobs. "Why'd you do that, you idiot? You could've been killed!"

"If I didn't, we both could've," he explained. "Could you imagine how mad Summer would be if we both got incapacitated?"

"Oh man, they've got to be worried," Raven said, calming down. "C'mon, let's get you moving."

"Right," Taiyang agreed. He put his arm around Raven, and she helped him up. She saw him wince a few times.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, yeah I'll be fine," he said. But as soon as he put weight on his left leg, he cried out and buckled. "Okay, okay, not okay, definitely not okay." Raven helped him sit back down. "Yeah, that's broken."

"Dammit, you're not going anywhere then, are you?" Raven asked.

"Probably not," Taiyang agreed. Raven started digging around in her pack, pulling out gauze and a stick.

"Hold this," Raven told him. Taiyang held the stick in place while Raven wrapped the gauze around it and his leg, making a splint.

"Thanks," Taiyang said. "My scroll's in my bag, can you grab it for me? We should call Summer."

"Right," Raven said as she rummaged through his backpack. Her heart sank once again when she found it, however. "Tai, I don't think you'll be calling anyone anytime soon."

"What do you mean?" Taiyang asked. Raven showed him his scroll, the device snapped in half. "Oh, perfect. Must have happened when i got hit. Where's yours?" Raven fished her scroll out of it's pouch on her belt, but it wouldn't turn on.

"Mine's dead, I must have forgot to plug it in last night," she said disappointedly.

"Well, only one thing left then," Taiyang said. "You need to go look for help."

"Out of the question," Raven said shortly.

"Raven, you can fly, you just need to find where everyone is and lead them back here," Taiyang reasoned.

"That thing is still out there and you can't fight with a broken leg," Raven explained. "I'm not leaving you alone until we're out of this desert."

"Fine," Taiyang said. Raven shivered. The desert became frigid in the dark. "Come here," Taiyang said, noticing that she was cold. "The desert can get colder than Mantle at night, we'll need to keep each other warm." Raven complied and embraced him again, careful to mind his leg. He returned the gesture and embraced her, instantly warming her up. She relaxed slightly, but still stayed on guard in case the Deathstalker came back.

"What was that all about last night?" Taiyang asked suddenly. Raven tensed for a moment, before sighing in defeat.

"I guess we had to talk about it at some point," she reasoned. "I honestly don't know Taiyang. I feel different around you than I do with Summer and Qrow. I've never felt for anyone the way I do for you. I know I didn't quite show it today, but I care about you, a lot."

"Feeling's mutual," Taiyang said, giving her a warm smile. "I have a proposition then."

"What's that?" Raven asked, curious.

"How about I take you on a date once we get back to Vale?" he asked. "And I don't mean we just go shopping for weapon parts. I mean a real date, we get dressed up, we go to dinner, and we have a night on the town. What do you say?"

Raven thought about it for a long moment. She'd never been on a date before, let alone asked. What does one even do? What do they talk about? It was a new challenge for Raven, and she loved challenges. After the way she behaved at the dance and the way she treated Taiyang today, she supposed she owed him as much. Besides, she liked spending time with him.

"I think I'd like that," Raven said, also smiling.

"Good," Taiyang said. "But first we have to get back to Shade, get my leg healed up, and then win that tournament."

* * *

 **Thank you all so much for being patient for this chapter, I have been busy and finding time to write has been hard (you guys can go ahead and partially blame Overwatch). However, another reason for my business is that I've been outlining and planning for a new RWBY fic, which I will get started on right away. The new story will start before I start on the next chapter of If It Means a Lot to You. Yeah, juggling 3 stories is going to be tough, but I'm so excited for this new one that I just couldn't wait to finish either this one or IIMALTY. So, if you're a fan of me or just want something new to read, keep an eye on my profile!**


	9. Legendary

Legendary

* * *

Vender walked through the cold desert, guided by the light of Remnant's shattered moon. No one really knows how the moon came to be in that state, it had been like that as long as humanity has existed, or at least as long as they documented existence. Some theorize that man is the remnant of space-farers that landed on the planet long ago, damaging the moon on their entry. Others think that the moon is the origin of Dust, and that a massive buildup of energy shattered the moon, letting the Dust rain down on the planet. Scientists debunked this, since Dust lost it's power as it left Remnant's atmosphere. Many still clung to the theory, always wanting a simple explanation for things they didn't understand.

Despite being a Grimm Studies professor, Vender was fascinated by the prospect of humanity leaving Remnant. What better way to survive the Grimm than to retreat? He loved the thought of man living peacefully on another world, completely devoid of Grimm, and being able to flourish, instead of being stuck in walled Kingdoms. Of course, scientists have tried creating an airship that could leave Remnant, but with each trial, the ship would come tumbling down toward the planet, with the Dust failing in the outer atmosphere. It seemed as if humanity was destined to fight the Grimm for eternity, forever struggling to expand their reach. Vender thought about Vale's attempt to expand to Mountain Glenn. The citizens now lived underground because of the Grimm threat. That hardly seemed like a life, but they were determined to make the expansion a success, and Vender respected that. Showing that citizens won't let the Grimm beat them is good for the whole world, it shows that humanity is still a force to be reckoned with, not just the Hunters.

Vender thought about these things often, especially when daunting tasks lay before him, like finding Raven and Taiyang. Despite letting his mind wander, his eyes remained vigilant, constantly looking for any signs of the two students. He always kept the security outpost to his back to orient himself, the signal that Qrow and Summer lit shining bright in the distance. He constantly checked his scroll, both to verify GPS coordinates, and hoping that a new scroll signal would appear on the tracker. The chances of Vender finding the two students in the vast Vacu desert were slim, but he wasn't giving up until he knew that they would make it back to Vale in one piece.

* * *

Summer

Summer climbed up the stairs to the roof of the outpost for the seventh time that night. It had been a few hours since Professor Vender had left to look for Taiyang and Raven, and Qrow had been sat, unmoving, in the same spot on the roof the entire time. Summer made it a point to check on him periodically. However this time, he acknowledged her.

"You don't have to keep checking on me, you know," he said somberly.

"I want to make sure you're okay," Summer replied.

"I'll be fine," he said, though his tone was unconvincing. "You can sit with me if you want." Summer obliged, and sat next to her teammate.

"Talk to me," Summer said. It was an order, but she said it caringly, almost like a mother asking her child what made them cry. Qrow hesitated for a moment, before sighing and complying.

"She's all I've got," Qrow said. "She's all I've ever had. Ever since we were kids, it's just been the two of us. We're siblings, we fight, we argue, we get on each other's last nerve, but we're the only family we have. I can't imagine losing her," Qrow explained. Despite being an only child, Summer understood completely.

"It's like that with my dad," she said. "My mom died when I was 2, so I don't remember much of her. My dad's always been around though, and the thought of losing him terrifies me."

"I could tell," Qrow said. "Your reaction to Mountain Glenn moving underground said as much."

"However, Raven and my dad aren't just what you and I have anymore," Summer continued. "Now we have each other, we have the team, our new family." Summer took Qrow's hand with that last sentence, and Qrow looked thoughtful for a second, before nodding in agreement. After a long moment, he spoke up again.

"Remember when we were talking all those months ago?" he asked. Summer looked at him, confused. "I talked about the difference between a Huntsman and a mercenary." Summer nodded in recognition, remembering back to their first week. "I only know that because that's what Raven and I were before Beacon. We were mercenaries, paid killers.

"I took my first life when I was only seven. Raven and I were cold, starving, and scared. We came across someone in an ally in Mistral, said they had work for desperate people like us, and that he'd pay handsomely. Needing the money, Raven and I accepted before we even knew what the job was. He handed me a dull dagger, and told me that he needed a business competitor dead. We went to the place he told us too, and I stabbed the target. The blade was so dull, that it took a lot more strikes than it should have. Raven had to take over to make sure the target was dead, I couldn't bear it anymore."

"How did you two get away with that?" Summer asked.

"Nobody suspects a couple of homeless kids as murderers," Qrow answered. "The payment for the job housed and fed us for two weeks. At that point, it was the best two weeks of our lives. Warm beds, cooked meals, we couldn't give it up, so we kept looking for jobs. We got better at it, getting paid more for bigger kills and honing our skills in the process. The two you know were formed from ten years of killing to survive."

"The two I know are good people," Summer said without hesitation. "People that want to change their lives to make the world better for everyone else. The two I know aren't killers, they're heroes." Summer truly didn't care what they did before, the fact of the matter was that they were her teammates now, and she'd stick by them forever.

"While I appreciate it, I definitely wouldn't use the term 'hero,'" Qrow said, but his voice was warmer. Summer took pride in knowing that she made Qrow feel at least a little better. "You think they'll be okay?"

"Absolutely," Summer answered. "Tai's tough and Raven's smart. Hell, they'll probably beat Professor Vender back here."

As if on cue, a rumbling sounded from the distance. Summer wanted to think it was thunder, but the sky was clear. The two students looked out over the horizon, and saw a large amount of sand rise up into the moonlight.

"That's not the direction that the professor went, is it?" Summer asked, praying that Qrow would confirm it.

"There's a couple of hoverbikes downstairs, come on!" Qrow said as he darted for the stairs, Summer following him.

* * *

Raven

Raven wasn't sure what exactly woke her up, the desert's biting cold or her throbbing head. As she thought about it, she reasoned that she might have a concussion. She shouldn't have been sleeping, but she didn't care. She was exhausted. Luckily, Aura helped Hunters heal major injuries faster than civilians. A concussion that would normally take someone weeks to recover from can fully heal in a few days, when Aura was paired with proper treatment. She lifted her head from Taiyang's chest and surveyed the landscape around them. Nothing but sand all around them.

She laid her head back down on Taiyang and tried to go back to sleep, but it eluded her. Something didn't feel right. They weren't alone. It felt crazy, but Raven knew that someone was near. She struggled to get back on her feet, the pulsing in her head protesting and trying to keep her on the ground. Exhausted and panting, she held Quoth Shadow in it's ready position and tried to focus on her surroundings.

She grit her teeth and poured all of her remaining energy into her senses, watching and listening for their guest to make itself known. A figure appeared over the dunes to her right. It seemed familiar. She racked her aching brain to try and place the name of the being. Then it came to her.

"Professor!" Raven called as the identity of the man came to her. It took all of her strength and only increased the pain in her head, but she managed to call again. The second call drew Vender's attention, and as soon as he realized who it was, he darted toward the stranded students. Raven fell to her knees as Vender made his way to them, she did her part. They were going to be okay,

"Raven!" Vender said, kneeling next to the collapsed girl. "Are you two okay? Can you move?"

"I can manage, just a concussion," Raven stammered out. "Taiyang's leg is broken though."

"What about me?" Taiyang said as he woke up.

"Okay, I'll call for an airlift then, I'm pulling the plug on this mission," Vender said as he pulled out his scroll. "There, the dropship is on it's way. It'll come get us, and then we'll swing around and pick up Summer and Qrow." He started putting his scroll back into his jacket pocket, and as he finished, the sand beneath them started to rumble. "Oh no, not again!"

"Is it that Deathstalker again?" Taiyang asked as Raven struggled to help him to his feet.

"It's no normal Deathstalker," Vender said. "It's Scorpio!"

* * *

Summer

"There they are!" Qrow said as they raced toward Scorpio. Vender and Raven were already fighting when the two arrived. Something was off though. Raven was sluggish and imprecise, not like her normal self. And Taiyang was in a strange stance, trying to channel his Aura into his palms no doubt, but his left leg was completely straight.

"I think they're injured!" Summer said.

"I noticed, let's back them up!" Qrow said as he converted Reaper into it's scythe form.

"I just need you guys to buy me some time," Taiyang said as they reached him. "Hold it off for a few more minutes while I charge up. We'll see how he handles all of my Aura at once."

"Got it," Summer and Qrow said together, before charging into the fray.

Qrow ran in first, deflecting a claw swipe aimed at Raven. Summer followed up with quick slashes to the monster's arm joints, weakening that arm, but not stopping it. Qrow tackled Raven to the ground as the monster swiped at them again, missing as they hit the sand. Vender went for Scorpio's head with his warhammer, a tactic he tried during their last meeting. Scorpio was old and smart though, shielding it's head and countering, knocking Vender away. He didn't get back up.

"Professor!" Raven cried out. She drew Quoth Shadow with a red coating applied and proceeded to attack Scorpio with quick, explosive strikes. The tactic might have worked, if Raven wasn't already hindered by her concussion. Scorpio countered again, too fast for Qrow to intervene this time. Raven was knocked out of the fight, unconscious for the second time that day.

"Guys, I'm ready, give me an opening!" Tai called out. Summer looked back and noticed that massive ball of energy that was held in his hands.

"Qrow! Pincer!" Summer commanded, Qrow executing the maneuver instantly. They bothe delivered quick strikes to Scorpio's flanks, keeping it's massive claws busy. Taiyang saw his opportunity, and unleashed the massive blast at Scorpio. It hit the monster square in the head, and enveloped it in a golden glow. Qrow and Summer fell back to watch the fireworks. After the attack passed, Scorpio was laid down, unmoving, with a massive crack in it's armored head.

"There, how's that taste… bastard..?" Taiyang said slowly before collapsing. The attack drained him of all of his Aura, and his exhaustion got the better of him. Summer and Qrow were at his side instantly, trying to rouse him.

They felt relieved, now able to focus on getting the others to safety. It was a short lived feeling though, as Scorpio began to rouse.

"You've gotta be frickin' kidding me," Qrow said in disbelief. But Scorpio was back up on it's eight legs, and visibly pissed off. Summer couldn't believe it either, Taiyang put literally everything he had into that attack. "You bastard!" Qrow charged Scorpio at blinding speed, converting Reaper into it's greatsword form. He charged right past it's claws and jabbed Reaper into the crack in Scorpio's armor. He fired his shotguns into the widened wound, earning a shriek of pain from the monster. It thrashed with all of it's might, trying to throw Qrow off of it. It eventually succeeded, sending Qrow into the air above it, only to be intercepted by a powerful swipe of Scorpio's tail. Qrow slammed into the sand, unconscious.

Summer was floored. Her team, her friends, her family, were all beaten and ready to be killed by this beast of legend. She felt powerless, she felt defeated, she felt… burning. Anger, rage, raw emotion was surging through her, a burning sensation stinging her eyes. The sand seemed to take on a silver tint as her emotions escalated.

"No…" She began to shudder. "No..!" Tears streamed down her face. "No!" She stood up, and held Silent Thorn at the ready. "NO!"

* * *

The next thing she remembered was the infirmary at Shade. She woke up looking at the white ceiling and green hospital bed sheets. She tried to sit up, but felt weak.

"Don't push yourself too hard," a voice said from her right. "It'll only hinder recovery." Summer looked to see the source of the voice. Professor Ozpin.

"Professor Ozpin?" Summer asked in confusion. "What are you doing here? What am I doing here?"

"When I heard that four of my students had a run in with a Legendary Grimm, I, of course, had to come and see them," Ozpin said in his calm, warm voice.

"Where are the others? How long was I out?" Summer asked, remembering the battle. She couldn't remember how it ended though.

"In your room here at Shade," Ozpin answered. "You were unconscious for about three days. Mr. Xiao Long is on crutches for two more days, while the Branwen twins now have a clean bill of health. Ms. Branwen's concussion healed rather fast, even for a Huntress." Summer let out a sigh of relief. Team STRQ was going to be okay.

"What about Professor Vender? What happened to Scorpio?" Summer continued her endless slew of questions.

"Professor Vender is also in good health," Ozpin said. "As for Scorpio, I had hoped you could tell me about what happened." Summer racked her brain, trying to remember details about the end of the fight.

"Professor Vendor and the rest of the team were knocked out," Summer explained. "I remember a lot of anger, sadness. There was burning, and the world seemed to glow a little bit. That's when I blacked out."

"As I suspected," Ozpin said after a sip of his coffee. "Summer, you defeated Scorpio. We found you and your team at the coordinates Professor Vender sent for pick up. You were all unconscious, and Scorpio was in pieces, dissolving like all Grimm do in death."

"How is that possible?" Summer said in greater confusion. "I'm the weakest fighter on Team STRQ, how could I handle something like that alone?"

"Because you are special, Summer," Ozpin said with his warm smile. "It is my understanding that you are fond of history. Have you ever heard of the Silver-Eyed Warriors?"

"No, sir," Summer said. "I know of the Maidens and some Legendary Hunters, but I've never heard of Silver-Eyed Warriors."

"I thought not," Ozpin said. "It's not a well known part of our history. The Silver-Eyed Warriors were the enemies of the Grimm, long before the time of Hunters and the Kingdoms. It is said that those bearing silver eyes were destined to live the life of a warrior, and could strike down a Grimm with just one glance. Summer, you are a descendant of these warriors."

"My eyes make me that powerful?" Summer said, trying to process what she just learned.

"With training, possibly," Ozpin confirmed. "Some famous Hunters, like Verid the Dragonslayer, were Silver-Eyed Warriors."

"So what now?" Summer asked. "Does anyone else know about this?"

"No, this is strictly between us," Ozpin said, and Summer felt slightly relieved. "For now, you will stay your course. Although, I do believe we will be seeing a lot of each other in the future, Ms. Rose." Ozpin stood up from his chair. "Now get some rest, you have a tournament to compete in in less than a week. I look forward to seeing how you four perform." Summer relaxed and Ozpin left the Infirmary. He was right, the only thing left for Team STRQ now was the Vytal Festival Tournament.

* * *

 **I'm getting so bad at writing these things fast. This one took a lot of revision though, it's a newer subject and I wanted to make sure I was handling everything right. As always, thank you all so much, and I'll see you next time!"**


	10. Round One

Round One

* * *

Summer

"Taiyang! Leg?" Summer asked.

"Mended and ready for ass-kicking!" Taiyang said confidently.

"Raven! Head?"

"Clear and focused," Raven said calmly.

"Qrow! Pride?"

"Now why do you have to go there?" Qrow said, clearly not pleased with the joke. He never got over how easily he got tossed around by Scorpio.

"Alright!" Summer cheered. "Today is Day One of the 29th Vytal Festival Tournament! Let's make sure that the first place trophy has Team STRQ engraved on it!"

"Right!" the rest of the team shouted.

"Team STRQ!" Summer cheered once more. "To Amity Colosseum!" The team walked out of their temporary dorm to head to the airship, only to run into someone in the hallway. "Professor Ozpin!"

"Ah, Team STRQ," Ozpin said warmly, taking a sip of his coffee. "I was just coming to see you four. Getting a headstart to the Colosseum?" The team wore slightly guilty but happy faces. It was nine in the morning, the tournament didn't start until one in the afternoon. "No matter, I'll go with you."

"We'd be honored, Professor!" Taiyang said.

"What did you want to see us for?" Raven asked as the five of them started making their way to the docks.

"I thought I'd visit all of the Beacon teams before the tournament. Some students lose their focus before it begins," Ozpin explained. "I wanted to remind them that they're not just here for personal glory, but that they are also representing Beacon as a whole. A lot of students forget that, and sometimes act… distastefully."

"Like that time the Doubles Round winners teabagged the losers like it was a video game?" Taiyang said.

"How childish," Raven said.

"Precisely," Ozpin said. "However, I doubt you four will cause any trouble. You are all excellent students."

"I suppose, in a kinda weird way, it's a good thing that we made you come here," Summer said cheerfully.

"I suppose you could look at it that way," Ozpin chuckled. "Although I must admit, I was considering making the trip anyway. Your team's… incident, convinced me."

"Why's that?" Qrow asked. "Headmasters don't usually come to tournaments they're not hosting."

"Curiosity," the professor replied. "Some teams, yours included mind you, have shown a lot of potential. This tournament seems like one to view in person instead of on the CCT."

"I don't mean any disrespect, Professor," Raven said. "But ever since we got back from our mission, you've been paying a lot of special attention to us. You haven't even talked to the other teams half as much as us. I doubt most headmasters pick favorite students, considering they are in charge of several hundred every year."

"Your doubts are not unreasonable, Raven," Ozpin said as the five of them reached and boarded the airship. Summer talked with Ozpin even more frequently than the rest of the team, due to Summer's newfound abilities, so she was used to being called by her first name. The rest of the team, however, was still caught off guard by it. "However, most headmasters also can't say that one of their teams brought down a Legendary Grimm."

As Ozpin smiled an uncharacteristically smug smile, Summer felt a mixture of pride and guilt. She was proud that her team can say that they defeated Scorpio. But she hated that they couldn't say _how_ they, well, _she_ beat Scorpio. The rest of her team still didn't know how Summer did it, honestly she couldn't tell them even if she wanted, her memory of the event was a blur. That worked in favor of secrecy though, since she could feign memory loss from a head injury, Ozpin kept her in the infirmary longer to add credibility to the alibi. The biggest source of her guilt, however, was that she had to lie to her teammates. Ozpin's smug smile turned into a subtle warm one in Summer's direction. He knew that Summer didn't like secrets, but the smile helped her feel better nevertheless. Get through the tournament, and then they will discuss where to go.

"Professor, what exactly are we up against?" Qrow asked.

"Well, it wouldn't be fair to give you information that the other teams lack, would it?" Ozpin teased, the smug smile returning and shooting it in Raven's direction. "That's something that you will have to find out on your own. But a tip, keep an eye on Atlas. One of their teams is led by what the Atlas staff only refer to as a tactical genius."

"What team would that be?" Raven asked.

"Now now, I've already said too much," Ozpin said.

"We are now arriving at Amity Colosseum," the pilot said over the intercom. A moment later, the hatch on the side of the ship opened onto the Colosseum's docks. The five of them stepped out of the ship, the four students taking in the floating structure in person for the first time.

"It is rather overwhelming, isn't it?" Ozpin said, chuckling.

"You said it," Taiyang replied.

"Do feel free to look around, you have a lot of time before the other teams and spectators start arriving," Ozpin said. "I have some business to take care of. Good luck to all of you, and I look forward to your fight in the Team Round."

"Thanks, Professor!" Summer said, the rest of them waving their goodbyes.

"Whoa," Taiyang said as he looked over the edge of the floating arena. The enormous Vacu Desert lay stretched out ahead of them. Shade Academy appeared as a large blotch on the golden canvas, and some of the very security outposts that the team inspected a week ago stood as the tiniest dots on the horizon.

"Nobody's scared of heights, right?" Summer asked jokingly, knowing full-well that two of the team members knew how to fly.

"No," Taiyang said. "Still wouldn't want to fall from here though, doesn't sound much fun."

"You'd be surprised," Raven said.

"She's right," Qrow chimed in. "Free fall is kind of awesome."

"Well yeah, when you can turn into a bird to save yourself it is," Summer said.

"Hey Summer, maybe you could use your cloak to glide down!" Qrow teased as he began walking into the colosseum.

"Don't convince her to try it, we need her to win the tournament," Raven deadpanned before following her brother.

"As if I'd actually try it!" Summer cried as she ran to catch up with them.

"You'd totally try it," Taiyang said, chuckling to himself as he followed the rest of his team.

They walked out into the stands and took in the arena interior. Thousands of seats sat along the circular structure of the colosseum. Underneath an open sky in the center was the large, octagonal arena, neatly divided into nine sections, eight of which can be turned into different terrains during matches.

"This is a lot bigger than it looks on TV," Taiyang said.

"I'll say," Summer agreed. She looked around and took everything in, until her eyes fell on two familiar figures. One of them was Professor Vender, without a doubt, but the other one was a very shorter, rounder figure that looked an awful lot like "Professor Port?"

"Ah, Team STRQ!" Port said, walking over to the team. "Welcome to Amity Colosseum! You're all here quite early."

"We wanted to check out the colosseum before the tournament started," Taiyang said.

"Admirable!" Port said. "It always warms my heart to see such drive and enthusiasm in young Hunters in training!"

"Good to see you four up and about again," Vender said. "You've got some hardy students here, Pete."

"I appreciate you looking after them, Adrian," Port replied. "However, it seems that these four did most of the work in taking down Scorpio."

"Hey, I can't take credit," Vender said.

"Really, sirs, it was nothing," Summer said, slightly uncomfortable.

"And still so modest!" Port said. "Treating their accomplishment like it's not worthy of legend! That is a mark of a true Huntress in training!"

"If it's okay to ask Professor, what are you doing here?" Raven asked.

"Ah, I'm glad you asked!" Port said in his usual enthusiasm. "Professor Vender here asked me to fill in for Professor Lilo in the commentator's booth, since she got tied up in an away mission. So I'll be relaying your matches to the general public!"

"With me," Vender cut in. "I can't wait to see you four in action again. As bad as it got, you all impressed me, even though you were injured."

"Thanks, Professor," Summer said, finally hearing some praise she was comfortable with. Vender was unconscious with the rest of the team when Summer's latent powers activated, so even he didn't know what exactly happened.

'If you'll excuse us students, Professor Vender and I have some more preparations to make, as I'm sure you do as well," Port said. "We'll see you in the first round! Do give us a good show!"

"We'll try our best, sir!" Taiyang said.

* * *

128 students lined up in their teams on the main arena floor, all split up by school. The crowds have begun filing into the colosseum, people from all corners of Remnant come to watch the biannual event. Summer didn't typically get scared in front of crowds, but this was something else completely. She just hoped she'd be able to calm her nerves before their match came around.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Remnant!" Port called over the speakers, talking to both the colosseum and the people watching at home. "These are the 32 teams, representing the four Hunter Academies of the world! Atlas! Shade! Haven! And Beacon! We're your hosts, Peter Port!"

"And Adrian Vender!"

"And welcome, to the 29th Vytal Festival Tournament!" The crowd in the stands erupted with cheers and chants. Summer's nervousness turned into a small amount of confidence. She was here for Vale, and she knew deep down that she'd make her Kingdom proud.

"For those of you who have never watched the tournament before, here's a breakdown of the rules," Port continued.

"The first round is the Team Round," Vender piped up. "All 32 teams will compete, and 16 will move on to the second round. The second round is the Doubles Round, where the remaining teams will elect two members to compete. There will be 8 winners that will then move on to the Singles Round, where one member of each remaining team will fight until there is only one champion!"

"And now, to unveil the first matchup of Round One!" Port said. A roulette appeared on the monitors around the colosseum, running through the names of the competing teams. It spun and spun, until the first slot landed on a team name.

"Team STRQ of Beacon!" Vender announced.

"Awesome! We're the first match!" Taiyang said excitedly.

"Wonder who our opponent is," Raven added. The roulette spun for what seemed like ages, the anticipation making Summer beat faster than could possibly be healthy. Finally, the roulette slowed, and Team STRQ's first challenge appeared on the screen.

"Team SMRK (shamrock), of Haven!" Port announced. Team STRQ looked over toward their newly-identified opponents. Four men, the leader of which was a short, stocky man with red hair that wore far too much green.

"Oi, we're fightin' the Legend Slayers!" he said in an accent that Summer couldn't recognize. Her heart sank. It seemed they had already made a name for themselves.

"Will all other contestants please leave the arena!" Vender commanded. "Teams STRQ and SMRK, please convene on the center platform!"

"Come along lads!" SMRK's leader continued. "Le's go make some legends o' our own!" The two teams met in the centermost section of the arena.

"What are you supposed to be?" Raven asked the short leader.

"Lass, tha's no way o' greetin' a man," he retorted smugly.

"So you are a man, and not some kind of imp?" Qrow added.

"Oi!" the leader shouted, his face turning a very bright red.

"What'd you call me?" Taiyang said, mocking the strange accent. The eight parts of the arena sank down into the floor of the colosseum, before two different landscapes replaced them, splitting the arena into one half forest, the other ice.

"3, 2, 1," Port counted down. "Begin!"

The two teams charged forward, weapons drawn and victory in their sights. Summer parried a blow from an oversized spear, wielded by the short leader of Team SMRK. She saw a great opportunity to take a page out of Qrow's book.

"That's a big weapon for a little guy," she said, smirking. "Compensating?" She didn't think it was possible, but the short man's face turned even redder at the jab.

"You're lucky you're pretty," he huffed, strange accent barely perceptible. The traded blows, lunging and parrying, before a strong hit knocked Summer back on the ice. She slid on the slippery surface before bumping into an icy stalagmite. She cleared her vision with a quick shake of her head, and looked to see how the rest of her team was faring. Unsurprisingly, Raven and Qrow were making quick work of their opponents, exploiting every opening they could create. Taiyang, on the other hand, seemed to be struggling. His opponent glided on the icy ground, Tai was having trouble keeping up.

Summer looked and saw that the leader of SMRK was heading to help his teammates with Ravn and Qrow, so she decided that she needed to help Taiyang. She looked at the stalagmite that she leaned against, and realized that it wasn't ice. It was Dust. She stood up and broke off the top.

"Tai!" she called, hurlong the shard at him. Taiyang caught and and caught the shard, loading it into Dragon Fist.

"Thanks, Boss!" Tai said. His armored arm turned from it's usual gold color into an icy blue. He punched the ground, creating a new layer of ice extending forward. His opponent wasn't paying attention, and fell right into Tai's trap, the new ice forming around his feet and stopping him in his tracks. He stumbled a bit, trying to keep his balance and not break his ankles.

"Hidden Dragon!" Summer commanded as she activated her Semblance. Not only could their opponent not move, he couldn't defend from an invisible opponent. He was the perfect prey for an invisible Summer. She charged and unleashed a long flurry of attacks while Taiyang built up his Aura. Summer just had to cut down as much of their opponents Aura as she could before Taiyang finished him. Each attack connected, one by one, the SMRK member helpless against blades that he couldn't see. Summer couldn't pack a lot of power behind her attacks, but she had speed and deception, and each time she glanced at the Aura levels on the stadium monitors, she could see her opponent's aura wilting away.

"Summer!" Taiyang called.

"Go!" she commanded. Taiyang charged forward, Dragon Fist burning a fiery gold on his arm. Summer got out of his way at the last possible second, and Taiyang delivered a massive blow to their opponent. The ice around his ankles shattered, along with his Aura, and he was sent flying out of the ring.

"He didn't even stand a chance!" Port announced.

"That's as knocked out as you can get, Pete," Vender agreed.

Summer and Taiyang looked over to the forest half of the arena to see how the other half of the team was faring. The twins were using their Semblances to disguise themselves as birds in the trees, only transforming back to attack. Summer had an idea.

"If anyone comes out of the treeline, make sure they get knocked out," she ordered Taiyang.

"With gusto," Taiyang grinned. Summer activated her Semblance again and made for the treeline. She crept around, no one know where she was or where she'd be. She scanned for both SMRK and the twins. She saw one of them, she couldn't really tell which one was which if she didn't see them transform, and got up against the tree that they were perched on.

"We're gonna set all three out for Tai, tell the other and wait until the time is right," Summer whispered. The black bird nodded and flew off, and Summer took her position. A moment later, two black birds took positions in the two trees that flanked her, they could only be the Branwens.

 _Man, this must be boring to watch,_ Summer thought. _If this works, it'll be worth it._ She could see one of the monitors through the treetops, and noticed that only a minute had passed since she and Tai knocked out their opponent. _One minute is an eternity in combat,_ her teachings at Signal echoed in her head.

A rustling noise drew her attention back to the fight, and saw their prey emerge near their positions. They waited and waited for what seemed like forever, waited for the perfect opening. Then it came. The three remaining members of SMRK all turned their backs to the hidden Team STRQ, who took their perfect opportunity. Summer reappeared and the twins turned human, and simultaneously knocked their opponents out of the forest biome and onto the center platform. Waiting for them was Taiyang, who had patiently been building up his Aura, waiting for this opportunity.

"Oi lads!" Taiyang mocked SMRK's leader. "Hope ye enjoy yer flight!" He then punched the platform in front of the dazed team, sending them all soaring back over the treetops and out of bounds, eliminating all three remaining SMRK members at once.

"Oh baby a triple!" Vender exclaimed. "After a moment of patience and a well-executed plan, Team SMRK has been eliminated!"

"The winner of the first match is Team STRQ of Beacon!" Port proclaimed.

* * *

"Lunch is on me guys!" Taiyang said as they took their seats at Simple Wok's booth on Shade's Campus. The main courtyard, the biggest patch of grass for hundreds of miles, was turned into a bustling fairground, with contestants and festival-goers milling about.

"You don't have to do that, Tai," Qrow said.

"C'mon, we're going to the Doubles Round and need to celebrate, plus we need to keep our strength up!" Taiyang explained.

"Because a giant bowl of salt is good for keeping your strength up," Raven said sarcastically.

"Hey, noodles have carbs, which is good for that," Summer explained. They went down the line and placed their orders, and not long after, their comically large bowls of food were placed in front of them.

"Well Boss, who's fighting next round?" Qrow asked as Tai payed the owner of the shop.

"Definitely not me," Summer conceded.

"Why not?" Raven asked. "It was your plan that won us the round."

"You guys know that I'm the weakest fighter of all of us," Summer said. "I do need to work on it, but for now, I'm better at commanding and supporting. The three of you are the muscle. The question now is which pair would work best?"

"So it's either me and Qrow, me and Raven, or the twins together," Taiyang said.

"I think it should be Qrow and I," Raven said. "We've been fighting together since we were kids, we can fight as one."

"But Qrow and I are partners!" Taiyang protested. "We've been training so hard together, I think we have enough under our belt to be effective."

"Well we all seem to agree that I should fight," Qrow said smugly.

"That's right, you're definitely fighting," Summer agreed. But then she had to choose between Raven and Taiyang. Raven and Qrow did have the experience and knowledge of each other, but as she looked at Taiyang, she could tell that he was less than pleased with his performance in the last round. "Tai, you're fighting too."

"Really?" Taiyang and Raven said together.

"That's right, now eat your salt, you're going to need your strength on Wednesday," Summer ordered. Raven looked at her with shock on her face, until Summer threw a wink at her that said _I'll explain later._ Summer wanted Taiyang to have a chance to prove himself after Summer had to intervene and help him with a matchup that should have been easy. As selfish as she could be, Summer knew Raven would get it and respect Summer's decision.

"Team STRQ, hm?" said a deep voice from behind the dining team. The four turned around to find four students in Atlas cadet's uniforms looking at them.

"Y-yeah, that's us," Summer said uncomfortably.

"Defeated a Goliath during initiation at Beacon, supposedly defeated Headmaster's Ozpin's right hand during the qualifying test for this tournament, and said to have defeated the legendary Scorpio just last week," the one in front listed off. "With that many accolades, I expected a more impressive performance. Instead I was reminded that you are just first-years."

"Excuse you?" Qrow growled.

"Easy kid, you need to save your strength if you want to stumble your way through the next round," the leader of the group continued to taunt.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Taiyang said angrily.

"What you should be striving to be," the jerk retorted. "James Ironwood, top of the class at the Atlas Military Academy."

 _This must be the guy Ozpin was talking about_ , Summer thought. _What a jerk._

"Why are you here?" Qrow asked heatedly. "I know you Atlas pricks get off on bullying people that are 'below you,' but we're trying to enjoy a meal here."

"Because while your victory was flashy and strategically sound, it was sloppy," Ironwood said. "What if SMRK didn't walk into your trap? What if your muscle here was attacked before the trap was sprung? There were variables that you didn't account for. You got lucky."

"So, what? We were bad? We shouldn't have won?" Taiyang shouted.

"I don't think I'd go that far," Ironwood answered. "The plan itself was adequate. I'll have to remember it for when I start commanding troops after graduating this year."

"Nice humble-brag," Summer chipped in.

"What I'm saying is that you need to think through and plan ahead more," Ironwood continued. "Then maybe you'd show me why they call you all Legend Slayers."

"Make it to the Singles Round," Qrow said roughly. "Then I'll show you personally."

"Noted," Ironwood said before turning and leaving with his team.

"Did he seriously come talk to us just to be a dick?" Summer asked.

"Essentially," Raven confirmed.

"That's Atlas for you," Qrow grumbled. "Privileged fourth-year that got everything he ever wanted in life. I can't wait to make him eat his words."

* * *

 **Ironwood, you're trying to help, but you're just the biggest dick at 20. Thanks again everyone! Can't wait to see who goes up against STRQ next! Remember to follow, fav, and review! Catch'a later!**


	11. Focus

Focus

* * *

Taiyang

In what seemed like no time at all, the third day of the Vytal Festival Tournament had come around, and with it, the doubles round. Only 16 of the 32 competing teams were left. Six from Atlas, two from Shade, three from Haven, and five from Beacon, including Team STRQ. Team CMSN wasn't so lucky. They lost their first round match within 15 seconds of it starting, earning a good laugh from Team STRQ.

Taiyang and Qrow paid special attention to Ironwood's match, but to no avail. Ironwood didn't even throw a punch. All he did was command his teammates, and even though three members were actively fighting, they won the match within one minute. They had no idea how the pompous fourth-year actually fought. They didn't know how they were going to fight them if they got matched up in doubles.

"You nervous?" Qrow asked Taiyang as they waited in the locker room.

"No, just thinking," he answered.

"Don't even sweat Ironwood, okay?" Qrow said. "I'll take care of him in the singles."

"What if we have to fight him and his teammate now, though?" Taiyang protested. "We have no idea how to counter something like that."

"Remember, it's two on two," Qrow said. "I don't care what tactical artistry he thinks he has, just one of his teammates can't take both of us. He has to get his hands dirty, and we can read his style then."

"Yeah, you're right," Taiyang agreed. "Then again, he might not even fight, if he's more of a commander. He might be like Summer."

"He'd better fight," Qrow growled. "I've got a promise to keep."

* * *

Raven

"Are you sure that this is the right call?' Raven asked as she and Summer waited in the stands for the next match to be called. Two matches had already taken place, leaving only 14 teams left, including their own. "Qrow and I would probably be a better pair."

"Tai got his ass kicked last round," Summer explained. "He'd be crushed if he didn't get a good fight. Besides, those two are partners, they wouldn't be if they didn't work well together."

"I suppose," Raven conceded. Qrow did mention to her that Taiyang could keep up with him in the forest during initiation. She could only really remember Tai fighting in team fights, he never really had a chance to fight on his own. The only thing she could think of was when he saved her from Scorpio. And even then, it was stupid and reckless.

"You gotta have a little faith in him, Raven," Summer added. "You, of all people, should understand that there is more to him than those muscles." Her choice of words surprised Raven. Suddenly her thoughts went back to the desert once again, the foggy memories of Taiyang holding her in the frigid night for warmth, her head resting on his broad chest. Then memories of the dance, Taiyang's strong but gentle arms guiding her through her first dance. She thought about his soft lips locking with hers, the one moment she let her guard down.

She shook her head to bring herself back to the present. It wasn't the time. She was so lost in thought that she didn't even hear them start the matchup roulette. It spun and spun, before slowing and finally settling on the first team.

"Qrow Branwen and Taiyang Xiao Long, of Beacon's Team STRQ!" Port called out as their faces appeared.

"Oh! Raven, they're next!" Summer said excitedly. The roulette continued spinning, building up suspense for the second team. Raven held her breath. The last thing the boys needed was to be matched up with Ironwood's team in the second round. Finally the roulette slowed, and the faces of the boys' opponents appeared on the screen.

"Lazu Li and Sal Omon, of Shade's Team LAPS (lapis)!" Vender announced. Raven sighed in relief. They didn't have to fight Ironwood yet.

* * *

Taiyang

"See? What'd I tell you?" Qrow said as he and Taiyang started making their way to the arena.

"Yeah yeah, you were right," Taiyang admitted. They walked out of the entrance tunnel and into the sunlight from Amity Colosseum's open roof, the crowd surrounding them on all sides and cheering. Taiyang scanned the Beacon Student's section, and found Summer and Raven. Summer was cheering her heart out, while Raven simply smiled. It wasn't much, but to Taiyang, it was more than enough from her. They climbed up onto the arena and walked to the center, meeting their opponents face-to-face.

The girl, Lazu, was fair-skinned and a little on the short side. She wore a blue, sleeveless belly shirt with a blue hood and white short-shorts. Simple boots with shin guards went up to her knees, and a large rifle was slung across her back.

The boy, Sal, was dark skinned wore a black, sleeveless vest over an open chest, showing off his arms and his abs. Baggy blue jeans covered his legs, and a very large greatsword was sheathed on his back.

"Compensating?" Qrow asked Sal after they all took a moment to size each-other up. Taiyang chuckled.

"You're just mad that mine's bigger," Sal said triumphantly, referring to their swords.

"It ain't the size that matters, pal," Qrow said smugly, to which Taiyang outwardly laughed. Sal seemed to be put off by Qrow's comments, before Lazu stepped in.

"Hey!" she said to her teammate, getting his attention. "Focus!"

"She seems nice," Taiyang muttered sarcastically. The sections of the arena sank into the floor again, quickly being replaced by four biomes. Mountain, urban, ocean, and anti-gravity. Taiyang nudged Qrow. "I always wanted to jump around on the platforms over there, zero gravity looks fun."

"Don't lose focus on the fight because of it," Qrow muttered back. "If you can get your opponent over there, you might be able to use it to your advantage."

"Maybe, can't predict how the fight will go though," Taiyang said.

"3, 2, 1," Vender counted down. "Begin!"

Qrow and Sal both drew their swords and locked them in a flash, and quickly began an intricate dance of slash-and-parry. Taiyang, however, was fast enough to get a punch on Lazu, Dragon Fist knocking her backwards through a building in the urban biome. Taiyang began chasing after her, but ran for cover as a flurry of bullets flew through the hole. Lazu dove out to get a better angle. Taiyang raised Dragon Fist to his head to block any headshots, as they'd make him lose Aura a lot faster. He took cover behind a building on the edge of the urban and anti-gravity biomes. He couldn't attack her head on as long as she had that assault rifle trained on him. He thought and thought, trying to come up with a plan.

"Plans are Summer's job," he said in frustration. Wait, Summer! He just had to think like Summer! He thought back to how Summer had turned the fight around in the team round. She threw Taiyang an Ice Crystal, and then used the forest with the twins to finish off the rest of SMRK. That's it, the environment! Taiyang looked around for something he could use, and then an idea hatched.

He peaked around the corner to find out where Lazu was. She had her rifle at the ready, and was peaking around the corners of other buildings. He had lost her. Taiyang focused his Aura, channeling it into both Dragon Fist and his feet. He examined the building he was taking cover behind. Cracks in the foundation on the side that Lazu was on.

"Come on out, Blondie," Lazu said as she looked. "Bullets don't hurt that bad."

"Believe me, I've had worse things than bullets hit me," Taiyang whispered to himself, remembering Scorpio. Lazu continued searching, visibly growing more impatient.

"Fine then," she said. "I'll just have to flush him out." She fiddled with her rifle, and leveled it at a building. A loud _thump_ was heard as she pulled the trigger, followed by an explosion from inside the building she aimed at. She had fired a Dust Grenade into a window.

"Hide all you want!" she called out. "My explosive little friends here will find you eventually!" She randomly fired, and the grenade found the building that Taiyang was hiding behind. He felt the building rumble from the explosion, then peeked around the corner to assess the damage. She had hit the cracks that Taiyang had observed, taking out a large chunk of the foundation.

"Well that makes this easier," Taiyang commented. He released the Aura in his feet, leaping up toward the top portion of the building. At the apex of his jump, he punched the building with as much Aura as he could channel into Dragon Fist. The building tilted, and the arena began to rumble.

* * *

Qrow

Qrow felt as the arena began to shake. He kept his balance, but Sal wobbled and fell, his oversized greatsword hard to handle with the rumbling. Qrow looked over to where Taiyang ran off to, and saw something he really didn't expect. A building coming down. But not like how buildings were normally torn down, with explosives on the base. It was toppling, like a tree just cut by a lumberjack. He looked to the left of the building and saw Taiyang descending, Dragon Fist still glowing from the discharge. On the right was his opponent, Lazu, trying to get away from the crumbling building, but the rest of the ruins were slowing her down. She wouldn't make it.

"And that's a knockout!" Port announced.

"Not much you can do when a literal building gets dropped on top of you!" Vender commented. Qrow looked to the screen and breathed a sigh of relief. Lazu was in the red, but her Aura wasn't dropped completely. She was eliminated, but not hurt.

As Qrow was making sure that Lazu was okay, Sal got back on his feet. Qrow noticed just as Sal was bringing his sword down upon him. He made a quick parry and began to run toward the anti-gravity biome, a plan forming.

"Taiyang!" he called out to his partner. Taiyang nodded, getting the message and moving to the biome. Qrow looked behind him, and Sal was taking the bait and following him. Qrow continued running and when he reached the edge of the biome, jumped up to the closest platform. Sal went to jump after him, only to be intercepted by Taiyang mid-jump.

Sal flew toward a wall and slammed into it. After a moment, he regained his bearings and kicked off toward Taiyang. Qrow converted Reaper into it's scythe form and jumped to intercept. Qrow met Sal, and unleashed a floating flurry of speedy attacks. Sal couldn't keep up with the increased speed of the scythe, and failed to block with his greatsword. Qrow dealt a downward blow, sending Sal rocketing toward the floor. Taiyang was waiting below, and knocked Sal back upwards toward Qrow. Qrow converted Reaper to a shotgun and waited, waited for the perfect opportunity.

He positioned himself with his back toward the center of the arena. Sal flew upwards uncontrollably, and eventually ended up right in front of Qrow. Qrow pulled the trigger, and blasted Sal with the full force of his 10-gauge shotguns. The recoil of the guns sent Qrow flying backwards, and due to his positioning, he landed safely in the center of the arena. Sal, however, was sent careening off of the edge of the ring and landed out-of-bounds.

"Ringout!" Vender called.

"In a brilliant show of teamwork and tenacity, Team STRQ has eliminated both opponents!" Port added. Qrow got up off of the ground to find Taiyang running toward him. The two jumped up for a mid-air high-five and cheered.

"You guys were awesome!" Summer yelled as she almost tackled Qrow with a hug. Qrow chuckled and returned the hug, then looked up to find Raven smirking at them.

"What's that look?" Qrow asked.

"You guys were okay," Raven said.

"That's not what you were saying when Taiyang knocked that building down," Summer teased. Qrow could see Taiyang blushing slightly and rubbing the back of his neck. Raven's face also tinted slightly red.

"Good job, guys," she finally said.

"That's more like it," Summer said triumphantly.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen!" Port's voice said from a nearby holodisplay in the hallway. "Time to announce the combatants of the next match!"

"C'mon, let's go get our seats," Taiyang said. The team walked back out into the stands and found four empty seats. They watched the roulette begin to slow and unveil the first team.

"Levi Cho and Vance Tanner, of Haven's Team LIVD (livid)," Vender announced. Qrow sighed with boredom. He didn't care much about the other teams, he wanted to see Ironwood. He needed to know how the man fought if he wanted to beat him in the finals. As the second roulette slowed down, his prayers were answered.

"James Ironwood and Malach Bol, of Atlas's Team JEMM (gem)," Port announced. Qrow perked up and looked out to the arena. Sure enough, Ironwood was walking out to the arena with his teammate. Qrow sat forward and watched intently. This was his chance to learn Ironwood. Qrow didn't notice the other fighters. He didn't notice the arena changing. His focus was locked on Ironwood.

"3, 2, 1, begin!" Port announced. Qrow analyzed Ironwood's every movement. Not only did Ironwood actually fight this time, he didn't use a weapon. He ducked and dodged all of his opponent's attacks, and countered with grapples and hand-to-hand. Punches, kicks, holds, throws, and not taking a single hit. He dodged a flurry of attacks from dual swords, before grabbing the arm of his opponent and tossing him into the other. He barked an order to his teammate, and then waited for his next opportunity.

 _Defensive,_ Qrow thought. _Using his opponents recklessness and momentum against them. He creates and exploits openings on the fly. He doesn't block, just dodges and counters, and never makes the first move._

Ironwood continued dodging and countering attacks, slowly bring his opponent's Aura down. A kick to the gut. A punch to the face. A leg sweep followed up by a chokeslam. He was fast, efficient, and brutal. A combination that Qrow knew Atlas favored. He'd have to exceed Ironwood in every way to defeat him.

Ironwood stunned his opponent and grabbed his leg. He began spinning, whipping his opponent around in circles. After a few turns, Ironwood jumped up, and slammed his opponent into the ground with an overhead throw.

"Knockout!" Port announced. Ironwood turned and looked at his teammate to bark another order. Qrow couldn't hear it, but he could read it on Ironwood's lips.

"Finish him." Ironwood stood and patiently waited, knowing that his part of the fight was done. Within moments, the other member of LIVD's Aura was dropped into the red, and he was eliminated.

"Amazing!" Vender called out. "In a brutal show of hand-to-hand mastery, Team JEMM has secured a seat in the singles round!" Ironwood and Malach simply walked out of the arena without so much as a word of celebration for either one.

"Were you guys watching him?" Taiyang asked.

"Of course," Qrow said, thinking of strategies.

"What are you going to do to beat him?" Summer asked.

"I don't know," Qrow answered. "I'll think of something."

"Reaper is a fast weapon," Taiyang said. "He might have trouble evading it, at least compared to most conventional weapons."

"Scythe and shotgun mode," Summer said. The team looked at her. "Ironwood used hand-to-hand and defensive strategies that rely on him getting in close. He doesn't have any ranged capabilities, so if you can keep him just within Reaper's reach, you can outplay him."

"That can work," Raven agreed.

"You just need to stay focused, Qrow," Summer added. "He was trying to get into our heads earlier. You need to treat it like every other fight, otherwise it can throw you off. Winning the Tournament is the goal, not beating Ironwood."

"Okay, I can't hold it in any longer!" Taiyang said as he burst out laughing. "I don't know how none of you have laughed at his name yet!"

"What's wrong with his name?" Qrow asked in confusion.

"Ironwood?" Taiyang said. "Might as well go by Irondick, it fits his personality more!" That got a laugh from the rest of the team. Qrow smiled and looked at the roster of remaining teams. 12 left. Four more doubles round matches. And the next night, the singles round, where the winner of the tournament was to be decided.

* * *

 **Short chapter this time around, but man am I excited for the next one, I hope you all are too! Thanks again for reading, remember to follow, fav, and/or review, I'm not picky(actually I like reviews the most, but y'all do you). See you next time!**


	12. Variables

Variables

* * *

Qrow

"Now, people of Remnant, the moment you've all been waiting for!" Port announced. "The one-on-one finals!" The crowd roared with excitement as the eight remaining students stood in the arena. Two students from each of the schools remained. Miraculously, both of Shade's remaining teams won their doubles round matches, one against Beacon and one against Haven. The other two Haven teams won their matches, both against Atlas. The left the rest of the doubles rounds to be Beacon against Atlas, both schools winning two matches. Qrow eyed the rest of the competition. Judging from their other fights, they wouldn't be much of a problem. All that mattered was matching up with and beating Ironwood.

"For this round, all contestants will be decided at random," Vender explained. "Each match will take place back-to-back, there are no breaks! There will be no time to prepare! Let's see who our first fighters will be!" The roulette spun, landing on a Haven student first, followed by a Vacuo student. Qrow and the rest of the finalists stepped off of the ring and went back to their waiting area. He watched as the center platform of the arena rose into the air, creating a smaller, suspended ring for one-on-one matches.

The two students began the match, trading blows and dodges, dancing all across the ring. Qrow wasn't paying much attention. He was playing back Ironwood's doubles round fight in his head, and noting everything he could remember. The other contestants around him started murmuring, which got his attention. He looked up to the ring and saw the contestants. They were locked, struggling in the center of the ring, both of them putting all of their strength into their attack, trying to muscle the other to a loss. Both succumbed, and as both attacks connected, the two fighters were flung backwards, both of them landing outside the ring at the same time.

"Well that's… unusual?" Vender said from the booth. Qrow and the other fighters stared, wide-eyed. No one had ever seen anything like that before.

"Well folks, this is certainly an unexpected surprise!" Port said in his usual enthusiasm. "We have a double elimination in the finals!" The crowd roared, excited to see something so strange. "One of our contestants just caught a break! Now, let's move on to the next match!" The roulette spun again. The first one stopped, revealing the first combatant.

"Shane Quinn, of Shade!" Vender announced. The second roulette stopped shortly after, revealing the other fighter.

"Qrow Branwen, of Beacon!" Port announced.

 _Figures,_ Qrow thought as he moved towards the arena. He stood in the center and faced his opponent. Shorter than Qrow, but stockier. He wore a denim vest over a black v-neck, and cargo shorts. Two of his teeth were fangs, Qrow wasn't sure if he was a Faunus or just a guy with some weird vampire thing going on.

"Legend Slayer, huh?" Shane said. "Your last fights didn't look like legend material."

"Look, can we just skip over all of this?" Qrow asked. "I just need to beat you so I can move on, last thing I need is for someone, who's already in my way, to be taunting me." Shane looked confused for a moment, before grinning and adopting his combat stance. Qrow observed. All of Shane's weight was on his front leg. He was going to charge at Qrow when the match started. He racked his brain, thinking back to Shane's other fights in the tournament. He had a plan.

"3, 2, 1, begin!" Port announced. As expected, Shane charged at Qrow, who hadn't even bothered taking a stance. Qrow smirked, and at the last possible second, sidestepped the charging Shane. Qrow spun, and used the momentum from the spin to deliver a back kick to Shane, whose own momentum was already carrying him forward fast. He flew toward the edge of the ring, landing just on the edge. He stood up and reached for his weapon, a falchion resting on his back. Qrow was already in front of him as he drew, delivering a powerful blow to Shane's gut. Shane doubled over and stumbled, off-balance. Qrow took his opening and hit him with an uppercut to the forehead, the hit sending SHane falling off the edge of the ring, and securing Qrow a victory.

"A five second ringout!" Vender cheered with the crowd. Qrow smirked. Poor guy didn't stand a chance. He looked to the Student Section of the crowd as he stepped off the platform. Summer and Taiyang were clapping and cheering. Raven, unsurprisingly, looked bored. Qrow's smirk turned into a full smile. Summer and Tai hadn't seen anything yet.

The roulettes spun, revealing the two competitors for the next match. The other Atlas student, and the other Beacon one. Qrow knew her. Amy Thist. Cute girl, third year. Neck-length purple hair, always dressed in nice combat skirts. Used a Dust Bow. One of her credits was serving as Professor Goodwitch's assistant, which happened to be during Team STRQ's Combat Training course. Qrow had sparred with her a couple of times. She was good, Qrow bet that she'd win that round.

The match began, and after a couple minutes of fighting on almost equal levels, Amy came out on top. The crowd loved it. It was a lot of back and forth, very entertaining to watch, even from home. Amy was clearly tired from the fight, her opponent was a good one. She stepped off the platform, and the roulette spun again.

"Qrow Branwen!" Vender called.

 _My turn again?_ Qrow thought. He hoped his opponent either wasn't too tough, or was Ironwood. The second one stopped, revealing Qrow's opponent.

"Amy Thist once again!" Port announced. Qrow looked at Amy. She was clearly already fatigued from her last fight. He felt bad. He knew how she could do at her full potential against him. She was done for. The two of them stepped onto the platform and rose.

"Qrow," Amy said with a nod.

"Amy," he returned. They both adopted their combat stances. Tired or not, Qrow was still going to have to try against Amy, even if just a little bit.

"3, 2, 1, begin!" Qrow darted to the right as Amy unleashed a hail of Gravity Arrows. He drew Reaper in it's shotgun form and fired a few shells in return. Amy converted her bow into a bō and spun it in front of her, blocking the shots. Qrow took his chance and rushed toward her, converting Reaper to scythe. Slash, parry, jab, block, they danced their two-handed dance. But Amy's fatigue caught up with her, and she started to slow. Qrow managed to catch Amy's bō with Reaper's head and pulled, disarming the upper-classmen.

"Sorry, Amy," Qrow said as he positioned Reaper. He pulled the trigger, blasting her with two 10-gauge bursts. The power behind the attack dropped her Aura into the red, eliminating her.

"And that's a knockout! Qrow Branwen advances!" Qrow walked over and helped Amy up.

"That wasn't a fair fight," he said. Amy shook her head and smiled.

"That's the way the tournament works," she replied. "Honestly if you lost, I'd be disappointed."

The two stepped off the platform, and Qrow went back to the waiting area. The roulette spun again. The first one stopped on the remaining Haven student, and the other landed on none other than…

"Ironwood," Qrow muttered. The Atlesian and the Mistralian stepped onto the platform. The Haven student adopted his stance, but Ironwood stood at attention. Legs apart, hands behind his back, he didn't look like he was about to fight. The match began, and the Haven student attacked.

Ironwood only dodged and weaved. The student attacked continually, but not one landed.

After a few moments, Ironwood struck him in the gut, and the student doubled over, unable to move. Ironwood put him in a hold, and walked him to the edge of the ring. He threw the student over the edge, securing a quick and easy victory.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we're down to our two finalists, Qrow Branwen and James Ironwood!" Port announced. The crowd roared the loudest it had since the tournament began. "Contestants, please step onto the platform." Qrow stepped onto the platform and faced Ironwood.

"Now, show me why you're called 'Legend Slayer,'" Ironwood said.

"Gladly," Qrow said in response. He drew Reaper and put it into scythe mode. He adopted his stance, and to his surprise, Ironwood did the same. Qrow smirked. At least Ironwood knew that Qrow wasn't someone he could breeze past.

"3, 2, 1, begin!" Neither of them moved a muscle. They stared, analyzing every part of their opponent, both waiting for the other to make the first move. Seconds felt like hours. They watched, and watched, and watched, they were both the hunters and each other's prey, waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Ironwood's finger twitched.

Qrow activated his Semblance at the ever so slight motion and flew toward Ironwood, turning back at the last second to get a swipe in with Reaper. The hit connected, and Ironwood was knocked backwards. He backflipped in the air and landed on his feet, charging at Qrow. Qrow jumped back to keep Ironwood out of hold range, but within Reaper's reach. He swung again, but losing the surprise element, Ironwood managed to dodge and move in. Qrow dodge an incoming grab and sweeped with his leg, bringing Ironwood to the ground.

Qrow twirled Reaper and brought the blade down in an overhead strike directed at Ironwood. Ironwood rolled out of the way, and Reaper connected to the ring, embedding itself and cracking the floor. He used the momentum to swing his leg up and catch Qrow in the jaw. Qrow was knocked upwards and let go of Reaper in reaction. He activated his Semblance in the air and flew up and around, divebombing back toward Ironwood. He transformed back at the last possible second, his speed increasing the impact of the kick to Ironwood's chest. Jame flew back, giving Qrow time to pluck Reaper out of the ground and give chase.

He jumped and fired Reaper behind him, using the recoil to spin the scythe around in a buzzsaw motion. Ironwood dodged out of the way and turned around. Qrow landed and sprang back for a counterattack, but Ironwood was waiting. He ducked and grabbed Reaper, using Qrow's momentum to redirect him to the floor. Qrow slammed hard into the ground, and Ironwood used the stunned second to disarm him and kick him away. Ironwood threw Reaper off to the side, robbing Qrow of his one advantage over him.

Qrow stood up to find a charging Ironwood heading his way. He brought his arms up to block the incoming punch, the impact making him slide backwards on his feet. He weaved away from another punch before countering with one of his own. Ironwood dodged and grabbed Qrow's arm, pulling him into a half-nelson hold. He somersaulted, slamming Qrow into the ground yet again. He then brought Qrow up into a fireman's carry, and tossed him over the edge of the arena.

Qrow activated his Semblance again, flying up toward the ring just before touching the ground and being eliminated. He flew back toward Reaper, transforming back and grabbing it before turning to a bird once again. Ironwood noticed the still fighting Qrow and stood at the ready. Qrow changed up his strategy though. Instead of trying melee again, he transformed back at a distance and took a shot with Reaper at range, then transformed back. He repeated, taking potshots at Ironwood. He kept going and going, until the constant Semblance use started to wear on him.

 _I keep this up, I won't have much Aura left to fight with,_ Qrow thought. If he could get closer, his shots would be doing a lot more damage, but at the safe distance, they were only doing minimal Aura wear and stunning Ironwood. _Time to finish this._ Qrow took one more shot before flying high above Ironwood. He turned human again and transformed Reaper to it's greatsword form. He fell towards the stunned Ironwood, Reaper in position for a heavy downward finishing strike. At the opportune time, he swung Reaper downward, Qrow's strength adding to the force of gravity. Ironwood shook off the stun at the last second, and brought his arm up to block. Reaper made contact, and a metallic _clang_ echoed out through the arena, followed by a shockwave from the sheer force of the impact.

"But... how?" Qrow asked in disbelief. He looked at Ironwood's arm. He had cut through the shirtsleeve, and saw a little bit of metal beneath the sleeve. _A gauntlet?_ He looked more, and noticed that Ironwood only wore one glove, on that hand. He could see his wrist poking out between the sleeve and glove, a metal wrist. _Cybernetics?_

"You didn't account for variables," Ironwood simply said. There was a _BANG_ , the sound of a gunshot, and a pain in Qrow's stomach. He stepped back and noticed that Ironwood had an intricate revolver in his left hand.

"Where did you..?" Qrow asked in a daze.

"You didn't account for hidden surprises," Ironwood said. He fired again, forcing Qrow back more. "You didn't account for any hidden abilities or weapons, only for my fighting style." Another shot. "You rely too much on instinct. You need to factor in unknowns and your opponent's adaptability." Another. Qrow felt incredibly weak. "And that, _Legend Slayer_ , is why you lose." He aimed the revolver downward at Qrow's feet, and pulled the second trigger. An explosion erupted beneath Qrow, knocking him backwards. The blast rocked what was left of Qrow's Aura, and it shattered, effectively eliminating him.

"People of Remnant! The winner of the 29th Vytal Festival Tournament, is James Ironwood!" Port called. The crowd erupted, the cheers could be heard halfway across Sanus. Qrow felt terrible, his pride shattered with his Aura. He couldn't get back up. Ironwood walked over and hoisted him up, walking him to the edge of the now-lowered arena.

"You can't rely on luck forever, Qrow," Ironwood said, almost apologetically. "If it's any consolation, you are among my toughest opponents. If the rest of your team is half as good as you are, then you four deserve the title 'Legend Slayers.'"

"It was… a good fight," Qrow agreed, a small smirk on his face. "You're still a dick though."

"So I've been told," Ironwood said. Qrow looked up and saw the rest of the team running up to meet them.

"Qrow! Are you okay?" Summer asked concernedly.

"Peachy, Boss," Qrow said. Summer and Taiyang took him from Ironwood. The three other members glared at him.

"You four, keep training," he said. "You'll go a long way."

"Of course we will," Summer said heatedly. "Farther than you ever will."

"Easy, Summer," Qrow said. "The fight's over. Save it." Qrow might not have been friends with Ironwood, hell he didn't even like him, but he had it where he counts. He had Qrow's respect as a fighter.

"I have business to take care of now," Ironwood said. "I'll see you all again." With that, he turned and headed to one of the exit tunnels. Team STRQ turned back to their own and started walking, Summer and Taiyang supporting the exhausted Qrow.

"Sorry guys," Qrow said. "I couldn't get that trophy."

"Don't even worry about it man," Taiyang said. "That was an awesome fight!"

"Yeah, even Raven was on the edge of her seat!" Summer agreed. Raven huffed.

"I could've won," Raven muttered.

"That's BS and you know it," Qrow said. He thought for a moment. "Summer, we need a lot more training time. We've been relying on luck for too long."

"That's why we're at Beacon, right?" Summer said. "We're only first years, remember? The fact that you did as well as you did against Ironwood, an esteemed fourth year, is astounding."

"She's right," Taiyang agreed. "We'll all get stronger. The next tournament? That one's ours!"

"The next one's in Atlas," Raven added. "We can show Ironwood on his own turf."

"I like that idea," Summer agreed.

"That's two years away guys, let's focus on getting stronger first," Qrow said. "We'll think about the future later."

"Anyone else excited to go back to Beacon tomorrow?" Taiyang asked.

"I miss my bed so much," Summer said.

"I'd like _a_ bed," Qrow said with a laugh.

"Let's get you back to the room," Summer said. "I'd say you earned it."

* * *

 **I know it's a shorter one, there were a lot of extra fights in here that I didn't want to drag out. Qrow vs. Ironwood was supposed to be the main attraction, and I like to think I did a good job with it! It's the most detailed one I've ever written, also the hardest. I really hope you all liked it, remember to leave your feedback! See you next time!**


	13. Obstacle

Obstacle

* * *

Summer

It was quiet as Team STRQ packed up their belongings. Summer couldn't tell if it was exhaustion, sentimentality, or just the fact that no one had anything to say. She, and the rest of her team, as far as she could tell, were more than excited to head back to Beacon. But they had spent over two months at Shade, two of the hardest months of their lives, with Scorpio and the tournament. It almost felt wrong to leave that behind and go back to Beacon. But at the same time, Team STRQ's dorm was calling their names. The softer beds, their room, they couldn't wait to be home.

"Well, I'm ready. Guys?" she asked her team.

"Ready," Raven replied.

"All packed up," Taiyang said. Qrow simply yawned.

"Just hang in there Qrow, there'll be plenty of time to sleep on the ship," Summer comforted. Despite sleeping like a log through the night, Qrow was still dead tired from the finals the previous day. Raven said that it was the hardest he had ever fought.

"I just can't wait to be back in my bed at Beacon," he grumbled. "They're much more comfortable."

"We're just one airship ride away, buddy," Taiyang said as he patted his partner's back. The four teammates left the room for the last time, careful to leave it exactly as they found it two months prior. It was a quiet walk down to the docks, passing many students from the other schools as they went. They eventually made it to where Beacon's ship was supposed to dock. Qrow immediately sat down on his suitcase, quickly beginning to doze off.

"C'mon Qrow, it's only a few minutes, then you can have a few hours to sleep to your heart's content," Summer said, trying to rouse the young Huntsman. He groaned and weakly tried to swat the girl's hand away.

"Um, excuse me?" a voice said from behind the team. The three conscious members turned to find a Shade student addressing them, a camera hanging around his neck. "You're Team STRQ, right?"

"What of it?" Raven asked him.

"Well, since you guys placed second in the tournament, I was wondering if I could get a picture of you all for the school newsletter," the student asked.

"Sure thing!" Summer said excitedly. She turned and kicked Qrow in the shin to wake him up. "Come on, photo op." Qrow cried out and grabbed his shin, suddenly much more awake. The leader turned to the photographer. "What kind of picture did you have in mind?" The photographer looked around the dock, before spotting a spot with a couple of trees.

"This way, bring your weapons!" he said, motioning to the team to follow him. As they all met up, the photographer looked around, eventually settling on one of the trees.

"Okay, now line up in team order, S, T, R, Q, perfect! Now, Summer and Taiyang, right?" The two nodded. "You two lean up against the tree. Hmm, Summer put your hood up, it contrasts better. Now I want Raven and Qrow to pose with their weapons." Raven took up an over-the-shoulder pose, putting a sheathed Quoth Shadow on display, and flashing a smile at the camera, something Summer still wasn't quite used to from the ebon-haired swordswoman. Qrow took up a lazy pose, hefting Reaper over his shoulder in greatsword form.

"Say 'Vytal!'" the photographer said before snapping the picture. "Hey, that's a good one!"

"Lemme see!" Summer said, running over to look at the camera. She eyed the photo and cracked a smile. "Wow, this is a good one! Think we could get some copies sent to us back at Beacon? This is our first really good picture as a team."

"Yeah no problem, what address should I send them to?"

"Aryle Hall, Room 636, Beacon Academy."

"Awesome! I'll have some copies made and sent as soon as possible!" The photographer waved and walked away, Summer smiling and waving back.

"Summer, check this out!" Taiyang said, barely containing laughter. Summer turned in his direction to find Qrow still holding the pose that he took for the picture.

"Qrow, he already took the picture, you can stop posing," she giggled out. Qrow didn't move, or even acknowledge her, while Taiyang fought even harder to avoid bursting out. Summer inspected the boy, to find that he had fallen asleep again, standing up and holding the pose he had in the picture. The leader's outburst of laughter broke Taiyang's laughter dam as well, as the two practically collapsed from laughter. Even the usually stoic Raven let out a small laugh.

"Someone get a picture! This is almost as good as that skirt incident!" Taiyang cried out between laughs. Summer wiped her eye and looked up, seeing the airship coming down to the dock.

"Time to go guys," she said. "Someone wake him up."

"On it, Boss," Raven said after snapping the picture of Qrow. She walked over and slapped Qrow on the back of his head.

"Gah! Why do people keep hitting me!?" he cried out as he clutched the back of his head.

"Ship's here, let's go," his sister replied as she walked away.

The team made their way onto the ship and onto their passenger deck. Summer picked a seat, Qrow and Raven taking each side of her. Taiyang opted for the floor. The leader pulled out her scroll and flipped through the calendar.

"So Qrow, since we all have another week off of classes, I was thinking that once you've rested up we could-" Summer was cut off by a weight falling onto her right shoulder. She looked down to find her sleepy teammate already snoozing on her shoulder. She smiled and shook her head. "It can wait."

She looked back down at her scroll and realized something. Despite coming in second in the tournament, and all of the publicity that came with it, her father had yet to call her, not even a single text message. She went to call him, before remembering the boy on her shoulder. Smiling again, she thought; _It can wait._

* * *

Raven

About an hour into the flight back to Vale, Raven looked up and around at her surroundings, bored out of her mind. A girl could only play Sweet Smash for so long before losing it. Qrow and Summer were napping, couldn't talk to them, and Taiyang was doing… something. He sat, cross-legged on the floor, his eyes shut, wearing a very focused face.

"Hey Tai?" the girl asked him. No response. "Taiyang?" Nothing. Curious, she poked his shoulder. Not even a flinch. She sat back and crossed her arms, frustrated in her own boredom. Suddenly Taiyang's eyes shot open, and he exhaled slowly, as if trying to calm down.

"Sorry, Raven, did you need something?" Raven quirked an eyebrow in confusion.

"What were you just doing?" she asked. "You looked like you were possessed or something."

"Sensei always called it 'Image Training,'" the boy explained. "But I've also heard Battle Meditation and Aura Trance be used to describe it, too."

"Oh, Aura Manipulation thing, huh?" Raven asked.

"More of a martial arts thing, anyone that's had their Aura unlocked can do it as long as someone with an Aura Manipulation Semblance is present," Taiyang explained.

"How does it work?"

"One of two ways. What I was just doing puts me in a trance, where I can fight shadows of past foes and other people I've seen fight, but they're kinda robotic and easy to read, it's more for trying out new techniques than actual training.

"But, if two people want to do it together, then at least one of them has to be an Aura Manipulator, like me. I use my Semblance to create a bridge between the user's consciousness. It's great for training."

"Training huh?" Raven thought for a moment. "Can I try it?"

"Sure thing! Haven't had a partner to do it with since I left for Beacon. It'll be nice to have a human opponent again!" Taiyang motioned for the girl to sit across from him. She did so, mirroring his posture. "Okay, so what I need you to do is close your eyes and relax. Let your Aura move freely so I can make the connection."

Raven complied, closing her eyes and exhaling. She was never one for meditating, but as she listened to Taiyang, she definitely felt something. A presence surrounding her, warm and almost comforting, her Aura. She almost envied Taiyang. Aura Manipulation was a common enough Semblance, but the applications were boundless, and the users could grow extremely powerful. He probably felt like this all the time, feeling this presence.

"You're troubled," Taiyang said, breaking the silence. "It feels… angry. What's wrong?"

"You can feel that?" Raven asked, surprised.

"Only when trying to connect our Auras," the boy answered. "Remember, Aura is the manifestation of one's soul. When one touches another, it feels what the other does. I'll bet you'll make my job a lot easier if you got it off your chest."

"It's just…" She sighed. She was still getting used to opening up. "You can use your Aura in ways the rest of us can only dream of. Hell, you can fire Aura Waves from just your hands! What can I do? Turn into a bird. I wish I could have easy access to so much potential, I'd be the strongest Huntress in no time."

"Hmph, easy access," Taiyang chuckled. "I didn't think you'd be the type to choose the easy road."

"I phrased that wrong," Raven said. "I want the limitless potential that comes with a Semblance like that. I can't begin to imagine the kind of work I'd have to put in, but knowing for a fact that I don't have a ceiling to my power? I'd give anything for that."

"Sensing a lot of irony right now," Taiyang chuckled.

"Excuse me?"

"When I was growing up, I'd have killed for a Semblance like yours," the boy explained. "I began training basically since I could walk. First my parents, then Sensei. I'm not sure how, but they knew that I'd be a martial artist, and lucky for them, my Semblance matched up with it perfectly. Even after I had discovered my Semblance, I hated it. It was training day in and day out, not a ton of time to be a kid. I wished that I'd had a different Semblance, something cool and unique, something I didn't have to work so hard to train.

"Then when I was about 11, I made my first Aura orb, and by 13 I was firing blasts and waves. It was about then that I came to terms with what I was, and began training even harder to become the Huntsman-in-training in front of you today. The irony is that I wanted a Semblance like yours, but came to love mine, and you have yet to love yours."

"How can I come to terms with something that's only going to hold me back?" Raven asked frustratedly.

"The first step is to stop looking at it like a handicap or a limit," Taiyang continued. "Instead, think of it as an obstacle to overcome. Train with your Semblance, think of ways that it can help you, instead of hinder you. Look at Qrow, he made full use of it during his fight with Ironwood."

"He still lost," Raven muttered.

"Summer sees what your Semblance can be," Taiyang said, ignoring her comment. "How many of her plans involved your Semblance, and got us a win? Won us the first round in the tournament, didn't it? Not to mention what you're capable of without any use of your Semblance. If that's what you're like when you're held back, the thought of you unshackled is pretty damn scary."

Raven remained silent. She pondered what her teammate just told her. There were many times her transformation ability came in handy, both for her and the team. Already new strategies involving her raven form entered her brain. Maybe Taiyang was right, and shifting her perspective could turn her abilities into an asset, rather than a liability. She could still become the strongest, and there was no way that one of her own abilities was going to stop that.

"You're feeling better," Taiyang commented, reminding Raven that they were still connected. "Ready?"

"Ready," she said, nodding and relaxing again. She felt her Aura tug on her, but not on her body. It was more internal, like a tug on her very essence. She felt herself being pulled forward, only to stop not long. The blackness of her eyelids seemed to fade into a picture, a near perfect black void were it not for the purple clouds and countless stars that spanned across her vision. She stared in awe, it was beautiful, in an eery way.

"It's a lot to take in the first time you see it," a familiar voice said from behind her. She flinched and reached for Quoth Shadow, but it was nowhere to be found. The only things she had were the clothes on her back. She looked up to find Taiyang, standing in front of her with his arms raised in a surrendering fashion. "Easy there, it's just me."

"Where are we?" Raven asked as she relaxed.

"This is the bridge between our Auras," Taiyang explained. "It's the space where our souls communicate directly with each other."

"Why don't I have my weapon," Raven asked, starting to feel almost naked without it.

"No weapons in here, see?" he said, tapping his right shoulder. She noticed that it was missing his signature pauldron. "I don't have Dragon Fist, either. This space is meant for martial arts training, either sparring or honing Aura techniques, no weapons required."

"So, I have to fight you hand to hand?"

"Let's be honest," Taiyang chuckled out. "All three of you could use some lessons in unarmed combat. You all rely way too much on your weapons and Semblances."

"Summer maybe," Raven said confidently. "Remember, I spent my entire life fighting. I know what I'm doing."

"Okay then," Taiyang chuckled, getting into a stance. "Prove it."

Raven leapt forward and drew her arm back, ready to open with a haymaker. Taiyang read her and blocked effortlessly. She punched forward with her other hand, and for him to parry with his own. A leg sweep from her led to Taiyang jumping.

"Opening," he said as he delivered a roundhouse kick to her head while in the air. Raven stumbled, the critique nettling her. With a growl, she threw a flurry of punches at Taiyang, all of which were blocked, parried, or dodged. She tried to blindside him with another haymaker, but Taiyang read her again.

"Opening." He ducked below the punch and delivered an elbow to her gut, making her double over. He followed up with a knee to her face, knocking her upright. Taking advantage of her momentary daze, he spun into a backwards roundhouse to her face, knocking her off of her feet and onto her back.

"Now that wasn't bad," Taiyang said as he walked toward her. "Definitely no beginner. But, there are a lot of things you still need to work on." Raven sat up and sighed.

"Think stuff like this is what Qrow meant when we said we need to train more?" she asked.

"Probably," Taiyang agreed. "I'll train all three of you. Obviously you guys won't be firing Aura blasts, but you'll be able to survive without your weapons."

"Then in that case," Raven said as she got up. She turned to Taiyang and adopted a stance. "Let's go again."

* * *

 **Thank you so much everyone for being patient, the holidays and several other things made finding the time to write absolute hell, not to mention finding a way to set up the next arc effectively. I'm sorry it took so long, and I'm sorry it's so short, but I'm back, Simpler Times is back, and we're all back on track. Thanks for reading!**


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